Uche Cecil Izuora
The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, has unveiled a 3MW captive solar hybrid power project at the University of Abuja, now known as Yakubu Gowon University, delivering stable, cleaner electricity to a campus of 58,726 students and ending the university’s reliance on diesel generators.
Developed by the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) under Phase II of the Energizing Education Programme (EEP), the facility combines a 3.3MWp solar array with 3MW of AC output and 2MWh of battery storage, backed by dedicated grid supply outside solar hours.
It has also installed 388 streetlights across the campus, improving security and extending safe hours of study and movement for staff and students.
Tegbe described the project as a direct investment in human capability: reliable power protects academic facilities and specialist equipment, eases pressure on institutional budgets by cutting diesel costs, and strengthens the research and graduate talent that drive the wider economy.
He linked the project to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, under which electricity investment is being directed towards the services and activities that most directly improve citizens’ lives.
“Energizing education also protects the investments already made in academic facilities and specialist equipment. It reduces the disruption that weakens research and makes learning more difficult. These benefits extend beyond the campus, through graduates whose skills strengthen the economy and research that helps solve the country’s problems,” the Minister said.
Yakubu Gowon University is one of nine institutions covered under Phase II of the EEP, spanning seven universities and two teaching hospitals, as the Federal Government extends campus electrification nationwide.
Tegbe described this continuity across successive phases as proof of the administration’s constancy of purpose, keeping its commitment to Nigeria’s young people active beyond any single ceremony.
He charged students and staff to help safeguard the new infrastructure by reporting any vandalism of the solar system or other power assets, including transformers and transmission towers, and disclosed that his Ministry is developing a nationwide electricity complaints call centre, creating jobs for young Nigerians, alongside a dedicated channel for reporting asset vandalism for immediate remediation. A joint team drawn from the Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is working to curb vandalism of electricity infrastructure nationwide.
The Minister commended the REA Board, chaired by Mr Ayodele Fayose, REA Management led by Mr Abba Abubakar Aliyu, the Nigeria Electrification Programme team and the project contractor for delivering the project, and thanked the World Bank, the Ministry of Education, the FCT Administration and the university leadership for their support.
The REA has committed to sustaining the battery storage system to meet the university’s needs, permanently ending diesel generator use on campus and lowering its overall cost of electricity supply.