Nigeria secures $1.5bn loan for solar projects

Nigeria has secured a $1.5 billion loan facility from the US-EXIM Bank to deliver solar power infrastructure in 10 different locations across the country.

This was disclosed by the Chief Executive Officer, SUN Africa LLC, USA, Adam Cortese, after a meeting of a delegation of the company with the President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday.

Addressing State House correspondents, Cortese explained that the loan was government-to-government facility, built upon the success that had been achieved in Angola recently, where roughly $2.6 billion of solar PV storage and transmission capacity was delivered.

He said the facility to Nigeria would cover a concession period of 20 years, “which is extremely attractive.

“What’s unique about this model is that NDPHC is going to own its own assets. So, it’s going to own its own generation base and our project will deliver a low-levelised cost of electricity, which will not only allow them to pay back the loan from EXIM Bank, but generate a profit on top of it.”

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, in a statement, said President Buhari, while receiving the delegation, declared that Nigeria’s drive to integrate solar power into the country’s energy supply would increase access to electricity in both underserved and unserved communities.

Buhari said his administration had embarked on several reforms to revive the country’s energy sector and improve energy access nationwide.

He applauded the interest of SUN AFRICA to invest in Nigeria’s power sector, vowing that the Federal Government would remain committed to collaborating with the private sector to improve energy access, creating jobs and industrial development.

Enumerating some of the reforms embarked upon by this administration to address Nigeria’s energy needs, the President listed the recent signing of the Nigeria Climate Change Bill in November 2021, the implementation of the Power Sector Recovery Programme with the World Bank and the Nigeria Electrification Program aimed at enhancing energy access to remote communities.

CATHERINE AGBO | https://21stcenturychronicle.com/