The 10 Megawatt Kano Solar Power Project, which is financed and overseen by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) with the goal of fostering the expansion of the power industry and ultimately drawing in more foreign investors, has been officially commissioned by President Muhammadu Buhari. The NSIA was given the responsibility of managing the financing and the construction of a 10MW solar plant on 24 Hectares of land in Kumbotso Local Government, Kano State, by the President. The initiative was carried out using a corporation called Haske Solar Company Limited, which is owned by Kumbotso, the host Local Government, Kano State and Federal Government.
With the creation of almost 2,000 job opportunities, this project is evidence of sustainable mid-sized solar PV installation in Nigeria and the biggest grid-connected solar PV facility in the country. The plant was constructed by a consortium consisting of Eauxwell Nigeria Limited, a native Nigerian contractor, and Greencells Energy Middle East and Africa Limited, their foreign partners, on a fully managed basis. The team installed over 21,000 solar PV panels, 52 inverters and two 6MVA transformers, as well as a cutting-edge warehouse and storage facility, control room building, workshop/office facility, and several other structures.
A significant change in the nation’s economy and power sector is foreseen.
At the commissioning event, NSIA’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO), Aminu Umar-Sadiq, commented that the project would lead to significant changes in the power sector since it demonstrates that renewable initiatives of this capacity can be effectively implemented. According to him, the 10MW Kano Solar Project has the potential to have significant socio-economic as well as environmental impacts. Additionally, it strengthens Nigeria’s credibility in the campaign against climate change and its promise to achieve the 2060 goal of zero carbon emissions.
They put a premium on hiring innovative and unique Procurement, Engineering, and Building contractors, and they utilized Treasury Activities to maximize the profits on the money they were granted to cover the cost of constructing the project. He continued on that the project also demonstrated a strong dedication to enhancing the welfare of residents by providing a 2.07km access road, refurbishing classroom buildings to guarantee students have a suitable learning environment, and drilling many community boreholes to provide clean water availability supplies.
On average consumption rate, 2,000 homes can be powered – Umar.
More so, the NSIA’s Portfolio Manager, Yusuf Umar, estimated that if the solar plant is used to supply electricity to homes with an average usage rate of three kilowatts, it will supply power to around 2,000 homes. According to him, the capacity of the companies in the Kano distribution system would also be increased as a result of the plant, which has the potential to power several factories of varying sizes, including both large and small ones, depending on the consumption rate.
Farouk Gumel, the NSIA Board Chairman, was pleased with the project team’s work and hailed the accomplishment as a historic moment in the development of Nigeria’s power sector. He explained that the NSIA was tasked with managing this project and provided all the appropriate help to carry it out. The impact of the project will be noticed; when there are new jobs and families are profitable, it will result in stability and harmony across the nation as well as improvement for the nation as a whole.
The country and host community benefit from the solar plant.
In addition to creating a supply of clean, inexpensive, and renewables to local firms and other customers, this project would drastically improve the Challawa Industrial Area, the city of Kano’s industrial center. In particular, it will boost industrial output by helping businesses operate at full capacity, improve operational efficiency, lower operating costs, and, eventually, attract foreign investments into that region. The project’s cost was $16 million, as disclosed by the MD, who also mentioned that NSIA had taken measures to guarantee it received value for its money, such as conducting a thorough procurement process that gave special attention to the suppliers’ financial and technical capabilities.
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