Bill to establish renewable energy authority scales second reading at house of reps

A bill seeking to establish the National Authority for Renewable Energy to regulate, coordinate and promote the development and utilisation of renewable energy in Nigeria has scaled second reading at the House of Representatives

The Electricity Act (Amendment) bill, sponsored by Afam Ogene, chairman of the House Committee on Renewable Energy, seeks to strip the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) and the Rural Electrification Fund (REF) of their renewable energy-related powers and transfer the functions to the proposed authority.

The bill passed its second reading during Thursday’s plenary after lawmakers debated it.

Ogene told lawmakers that the proposed legislation would address institutional gaps in the electricity sector and provide a dedicated regulatory framework for renewable energy development.

He identified specialised regulation, rural electrification, investment and employment generation, energy diversification, consumer protection and institutional funding as key objectives of the bill.

The legislator said the proposed authority would promote mini-grid and off-grid electricity systems in remote, unserved and underserved communities, while encouraging local production, research, technological innovation and capacity development.

He said the legislation would also establish provisions for tariffs, licensing, operating standards, compliance monitoring and dispute resolution.

The bill sparked divergent views among legislators, with supporters arguing that a dedicated renewable energy regulator would address gaps in oversight and strengthen the sector, while opponents warned that the proposed authority could duplicate existing functions and increase governance costs.

Victor Nwokolo, chairman of the house committee on power, rejected the bill, questioning the rationale for the proposal to remove renewable energy regulation from NERC at a time when the country was seeking to streamline government institutions.

Nwokolo noted that the Electricity Act 2023 had empowered subnational governments, including local governments, to establish their own electricity generation, distribution and marketing systems.

The lawmaker said he had recently participated in discussions at the power ministry on amending the Electricity Act to establish uniform regulatory standards.

He argued that creating a separate authority for renewable energy could complicate regulatory coordination and undermine efforts to reduce governance costs.

Ahmadu Jaha, an APC lawmaker from Borno, concurred with Nwokolo, describing the proposed authority as a potential duplication of existing regulatory functions.

Jaha noted that separating renewable energy regulation from conventional electricity regulation could create confusion in the sector, particularly since existing institutions had already been engaging with lawmakers on regulatory reforms.

However, Ibrahim Almustapha, lawmaker from Sokoto, supported the bill, stating that renewable energy regulation suffered from significant oversight gaps that warranted a dedicated institution.

Almustapha said the growing participation of subnational governments in electricity provision had exposed capacity deficiencies that a specialised regulator could help address.

Mark Esset, an APC member from Akwa Ibom, also backed the bill, saying decades of electricity supply challenges underscored the need for fresh approaches to regulation and energy development.

Esset said the growing adoption of renewable energy by households and businesses made it necessary to establish clear rules and standards to guide the sector’s expansion.

He rejected the argument that the proposed authority would undermine NERC, contending that the bill was consistent with broader efforts to decentralise electricity regulation, generation and distribution.

Lawmakers overwhelmingly voted in support of the bill when Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house, called for a voice vote.

A recent report by Ember, an energy think tank, projected that Nigeria will install 1.7 gigawatts (GW) of solar power in 2026.

In the report released on August 27, titled ‘The take-off in African solar that official statistics can’t yet see’, Ember estimated that the continent will install a record 17GW of solar capacity in 2026 — a 45 percent increase from 2025.

Last month, the federal government backed away from plans to immediately ban the importation of solar panels.

Kingsley Udeh, minister of innovation, science and technology, announced the position following concerns from business leaders and renewable energy advocates that an immediate ban could increase costs and undermine access to clean energy.