Solar best suitable for rural electrification – NASENI

The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure has described solar energy as the most suitable means of providing electricity to rural communities that are far away from the reach of the country’s power grid.

According to the agency, 60 per cent of Nigerians do not have access to the national grid, and most of those affected are rural dwellers.

The Executive Vice Chairman, NASENI, Mr. Mohammed Haruna, explained that the cost of installing a grid system to some communities was the major barrier to access to the national grid.

Haruni spoke with journalists during a tour of the agency’s solar panel assembly plant in Abuja on Wednesday.

He said, “The cost of installing a grid depends on the system used, the length of connection required, topography, usage pattern and the load factor of the supply point. Consequently, grid connection has become less popular and less economically viable for electricity generation in rural areas.

“Solar energy has the potential to tackle this challenge. Nigeria receives 5.535kWh per square metre per day of solar energy and an average of six to nine hours sunshine per day.”

Haruna stated that in view of the abundant sunshine all year round, the location of the country within the humid tropical region and the characteristic isolated pattern of human settlement, solar technology was particularly well suited for use in Nigeria.

He said it was within the agency’s mandate to let the government know that no country had relied only on one source of energy generation and was able to make it efficiently.

The EVC noted that the agency’s 7.5 megawatts solar panel assembly plant was not adequate for a country like Nigeria and called for an expansion.

He said, “We have many constraints in this business. The biggest is that there are a lot of inferior quality and underrated products in the market that can go cheaper than the ones produced in this plant.

“Also, there is a very poor patronage from government agencies that are into the business of solar energy installations. In most cases, these government agencies, despite our efforts and interaction with them, at the end of the day, issue job orders to contractors who buy inferior solar panels.”

Haruna said several solar installations such as street light and many others seen across the country were not working as a result of their poor quality and “this is because they are improperly designed.”

He added, “We have done a lot by going to the ministries and agencies but at the end of the day, they allow the contractors the freedom to select which panel to buy whether the panels are of good quality or not. This is not good.”