Nigerian Government Announces Plan to Study Egypt’s Power Sector
The Nigerian government has announced plans to partner with Egypt to boost its power generation and transmission capacity, admitting Egypt has achieved a lot in the energy sector. This is similar to what Peter Obi did in 2022 when he visited Egypt to study its power infrastructure which generated mixed reactions at the time.
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At a meeting in Abuja, Nigeria’s Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu and the Egyptian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mohammed Fouad discussed increasing bilateral cooperation in energy expansion, with focus on renewable energy and rural electrification.
Adelabu commended Egypt’s achievement in energy infrastructure development and said Nigeria wants to learn from Egypt’s experience in power generation, transmission, and distribution. He said, “Egypt has done a lot in energy transition and we want to collaborate and learn from you. Our target is to have reliable, stable and affordable energy for all Nigerians.”
Adelabu also spoke about Nigeria’s plan to improve electricity access, especially in the rural areas where extending the national grid is economically challenging. He mentioned Nigeria’s abundant renewable energy resources – solar, wind, and hydroelectric and said the country is determined to harness them for sustainable energy access.
Egypt’s rapid growth in power generation is a model for Nigeria. Between 2015 and 2018, Egypt increased its power generation capacity from 20,000 megawatts to over 55,000 megawatts by building gas-fired power plants and integrating renewable energy sources. Egypt is now a leader in energy infrastructure development in Africa.
Peter Obi in 2022 visited Egypt and saw this development for himself. He said, “Egypt within a space of five years moved their power from 20,000 megawatts to 58,000 megawatts as of today.” Obi said Nigeria can also achieve the same if we put in the necessary effort, within the same timeframe.
This is a follow-up to earlier discussions on Nigeria’s power sector. In January 2022, the Nigerian government announced it would partner with Egypt for technical support in electricity transmission and distribution. At the time the Minister of Power, Abubakar Aliyu said such a partnership would improve power supply and promote renewable energy in Nigeria.
The current administration is taking a strategic approach to addressing Nigeria’s power challenge by learning from a country that has done it before and adopting best practices and international cooperation.
