FG’s solar mini-grid powers 13,000 residents, 23 businesses in Kwara

About 13,000 residents and 23 businesses in Oke-Oyi, Ilorin East Local Government Area of Kwara State, have gained access to improved electricity following the commissioning of a 581kWp solar mini-grid by the Federal Government.

The project, delivered through the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), is powering businesses including welding, grain milling, pure water production, aluminium works, ice-block production and cold-room operations.

Developed by Nayo Tropical Technologies Limited under the Rural Electrification Fund–Interconnected Mini-Grid Acceleration Scheme (REF-IMAS), the project was supported by the European Union and German Cooperation through GIZ.

The facility comprises 1,336 solar panels, 84 batteries, about 10 kilometres of distribution cables and transformers serving residential and productive users.

Speaking at the commissioning, the Minister of Power, Chief Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, said the project was designed to translate electricity access into improved livelihoods and economic opportunities.

“The purpose of electrification is ultimately to improve lives and create opportunities. What we are commissioning today in Oke-Oyi is an investment in the productive capacity of the community,” Tegbe said.

The Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Nayo Tropical Technologies, Okenwa Anayo Nas, said about 180 households had so far been energised, with plans to expand coverage to 2,200 households.

He added that electricity had been extended to more than five schools and about six public and private health facilities.

According to Anayo, the mini-grid is powering about 23 small and medium-scale businesses, while the company is working with the community to establish agro-processing cooperatives.

He said businesses that previously spent about N200,000 monthly on diesel now spend less than N50,000 on electricity. Average household expenditure is below N6,000 monthly.

Anayo said customers currently pay less than N300 per kilowatt-hour, with daytime consumption costing about N150 and nighttime consumption around N160. He added that the company plans to expand the facility to between three and four megawatts over the next decade.

Representing Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman Abdulrazaq, Speaker of the state House of Assembly and APC governorship candidate, Salihu Yakubu Danladi, said reliable electricity was essential to enterprise development, employment and improved livelihoods.

The Managing Director and CEO of REA, Abba Abubakar Aliyu, said the emergence of new businesses demonstrated the economic value of the project beyond its physical infrastructure.

“The real measure of an electrification project is not only the infrastructure we commission, but the opportunities that reliable electricity creates for the people who use it,” Aliyu said.

Head of Development Cooperation at the German Embassy, Dr Karin Jansen, described the project as an example of effective collaboration between government, development partners, private-sector developers and host communities.

She said lessons from Oke-Oyi could guide the deployment of more interconnected mini-grids across Nigeria.

Also speaking, IBEDC Chief Commercial Officer, North, Dr Ademola Adewumi, said integrating the mini-grid into the distribution network would improve electricity reliability while supporting businesses and productive activities.