REA AND LAGOS STATE ELECTRIFICATION AGENCY SIGN COLLABORATION AGREEMENT TO ACCELERATE SOLAR ROOFTOP DEPLOYMENT IN PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS

The Rural Electrification Agency (REA), in collaboration with the Lagos State Government, today held a strategic roundtable and signing ceremony to formalise their partnership for the implementation of the Subnational Interventions Programme - Solar Rooftop Solutions projects across public institutions in Lagos State. This initiative under the World Bank-funded Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) project, is a strategic initiative aimed at scaling access to clean, reliable, and sustainable energy in public institutions across Nigeria's states by leveraging the unique opportunities presented by the Electricity Act of 2023.

Hosted at the Lagos Oriental Hotel, the high-level roundtable and signing ceremony brought together key stakeholders from Federal and State governments, development partners, and the renewable energy private sector, including Renewable Energy Service Companies (RESCOs), to advance subnational electrification efforts in alignment with the National Electrification Strategy and Implementation Plan (NESIP) and the Electricity Act 2023.

The Lagos Solar Rooftop Project, a pilot initiative under DARES, aims to deploy durable, high-quality solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in general hospitals across the state. These institutions currently rely on diesel generators for power, a challenge that the project seeks to solve by delivering clean, reliable, and cost-effective electricity to power critical services.

In his tone-setting remarks, Abba Aliyu, Managing Director/CEO of the REA, emphasised the significance of this subnational engagement, reiterating the agency’s commitment to subnational energy partnerships: “While there is a need for the importation of PV panels, one of the key things the REA is driving is domesticating the manufacturing of these renewable equipment in the country.”

“With Lagos being the centre of excellence, you are going to play a pivotal role in that domestication. To date, already, we have crystallised the emergence of a PV panel manufacturing plant in Ikotun, here in Lagos---a hundred-megawatt capacity.”

“We are also in the process of signing a joint development agreement with a lithium battery assembly plant in Lekki Free Trade Zone, which is a $150 million investment.”

“There is a PV panel manufacturing assembly plant here in Lagos called Auxano Solar which started with ten megawatts. But since their collaboration with the REA, have been able to increase their capacity by an additional one hundred megawatts capacity, bringing their total PV panel capacity to one hundred and ten megawatts.”

“With the unique challenge of limited land availability in Lagos State, we aim to pioneer the first floating solar power plant in Nigeria and deploy 8 megawatts of solar power at the University of Lagos.”

Leading the Nigeria DARES project implementation, Olufemi Akinyelure, Head of the Nigeria Electrification Programme, highlighted the project’s strategic relevance to Nigeria’s broader energy goals:

“Based on the successes of the Nigeria Electrification Project is why we have the Nigeria Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) project, which is the largest publicly-funded energy access program in the world. Under the Nigeria Electrification Project, we deployed just over a hundred megawatts of energy, but under the DARES project, our target is to deploy over 500 megawatts of energy.”

His Excellency, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by the Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, reiterated the state’s commitment to innovation and resilience in energy provision:

“It is so impressive seeing all that the REA is doing and plans to do in Lagos State, from the presentations of the Managing Director and Executive Directors. It is very clear that there is a pipeline of activities and actions that can help us in terms of power production and we must make these things happen.”

“Our next meeting should be about what each party is doing, when they will take place, and when we can commission these projects. What we would like to see is the implementation plan so we can actualise it.”

Presentations from the REA’s Executive Management provided insights into the implementation strategy, available incentives, and the enabling environment being created for private sector participation. The roundtable also served as a platform for RESCOs to engage directly with the REA and Lagos State Government, express interest, and commit to participating in the deployment of renewable energy projects in the state.

The signing of the Collaboration Agreement between the REA and Lagos State Electrification Agency marks the formal launch of the Subnational Interventions - Solar Rooftop Solutions Project and a long-term strategic relationship aimed at delivering sustainable, inclusive, and secure energy infrastructure. It also provides a model for future subnational projects under the DARES programme, with the REA serving as the technical lead and facilitator.

This partnership represents a transformative shift in Nigeria’s electrification journey, demonstrating the power of collaboration, innovation, and targeted interventions in meeting the country’s energy transition and security goals.