The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) has said it will provide access to electricity for 105,000 households, 20,000 Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs) and eight federal universities through a $200 million fund recently approved by the African Development Bank (AfDB).
The Managing Director of REA, Ahmad Salihijo, said this during his visit to the AfDB office in Abuja, and added that the agency would soon hold a project brief for the NEP-AfDB to discuss the impact of the project in the Nigerian energy sector.
A statement from the agency indicated that Salihijo was received by the Task Team Lead, AfDB-funded Nigerian Electrification Project (NEP) and other members of the NEP-AfDB project.
The board of AfDB had earlier approved a $200m sovereign facility for the NEP; which is to increase electricity access across the targeted beneficiaries.
Meanwhile, the REA recently held the second Solar Home System (SHS) quarterly roundtable in Lagos to promote access to electricity. The event attracted grantees who signed the Output Based Fund grant agreement under the Standalone Solar Home Systems component of NEP.
It said discussions were centred on highlighting the component goals, grant payment processes by REA to local firms and possible assistance to relieving the market hurdles.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through its Nigerian Power Sector Support Programme, made a presentation at the event on Import Duty Exemption Certificate, especially for power equipment to accelerate processes for increasing access to electricity in the country.
