Yemisi Izuora
Nigeria is now the focal point for renewable energy production and has become a manufacturing hub in the West African sub-region, says the Managing Director (MD) of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Dr. Abba Aliyu.
Aliyu, said Nigeria is making significant strides in localising its renewable energy value chain, with installed solar panel manufacturing capacity increasing from 120 megawatts (MW) two years ago to approximately 300MW currently.
With an additional 3.7 gigawatts (GW) in the pipeline, the increase in capacity to 300MW within the period is about 150 per cent.
This development has positioned the country to emerge as a leading renewable energy manufacturing hub in West Africa, with growing potential to serve regional markets.
Speaking during a webinar organised by the African Association of Energy Journalists and Publishers (AJERAP), he attributed this progress to deliberate policy direction under President Bola Tinubu’s ‘Nigeria First Policy’, which prioritises local content development and domestic manufacturing.
According to the MD, 2025 marked a defining year for Nigeria’s solar industry, with imports of solar cells and components for local assembly reaching 837MW more than the cumulative 375 MW imported in all previous years combined, and overtaking finished product imports.
Speaking further he said, this was a powerful demonstration that the Nigeria First policy was driving a structural shift toward domestic manufacturing in the renewables sector.
Aliyu added that this momentum is being reinforced by approximately $425 million in investment earmarked for the establishment of eight renewable energy manufacturing facilities across the country, alongside additional commitments secured at the Nigeria Renewable Energy Innovation Forum (NREIF) 2025.
These developments, he said, are helping to build an integrated ecosystem spanning manufacturing, deployment, and financing, while creating the scale needed for long-term sustainability.
Aliyu emphasised that REA’s large-scale deployment programmes such as the Energising Education Programme (EEP) and Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-Up (DARES) are now providing the predictable demand required to sustain domestic manufacturing, ensuring that local production is matched with real market opportunities.
He further noted that Nigeria’s regulatory environment continues to evolve to support this growth, with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) expanding the framework for Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) enabling projects of up to 10MW capacity under decentralised and Interconnected Mini-Grid generation structures, thereby unlocking new opportunities for private sector participation.
Nigeria, he said, is also beginning to realise its regional potential, with locally manufactured solar panels already being exported from Lagos to Accra, Ghana, signaling a transition from a renewable energy consumer to a regional supplier.
Looking ahead, Aliyu highlighted the potential for solar deployments in border communities to support cross-border electricity trade, strengthening regional integration and energy security.
He added that Nigeria’s electrification model is increasingly being recognised across the continent, with countries such as Mozambique, Benin Republic, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Mauritania, and Mauritius engaging with the REA to replicate elements of its approach.
Building on this momentum, the next phase of the Nigeria Renewable Energy Innovation Forum (NREIF 2.0), Aliyu stressed, will focus on regional integration and positioning Nigeria as a central hub for renewable energy manufacturing, innovation, and trade across Africa.
Aliyu stated that Nigeria’s progress reflects a broader shift from project-based interventions to building a fully integrated renewable energy ecosystem, anchored on local manufacturing, scalable deployment, and regional partnerships.