A new photovoltaic solar facility has been set up at the headquarters of Nigeria’s Minister of Works and Housing in Abuja. The Federal Executive Council had authorised the project in March 2019. The plant will have a capacity of 1.52 MWp.
The new facility provides power to five buildings that house the Federal Minister of Works and Housing and Environment and Lands. According to the Minister, the new solar power facility would save around $657,000 per year. Over a 20-year period, the fuel consumption of the two government departments is projected to decrease from 764,248 litres to 166,825 litres.
The initiative will also minimise carbon dioxide emissions caused by the usage of diesel generators. The solar power plant was inaugurated nearly three years after a comparable project for the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Energy was completed. The capacity of the other solar photovoltaic plant put on the building’s roof is 750 kWp.
The Nigerian federal government hopes that by implementing these projects, it will encourage the public and private companies, producers, and the general public to use off-grid solar power in a country where access to electricity is still limited to 55.4 percent of the 219 million people population. Enterprises that provide low-cost solar solutions to individuals in rural regions are also being promoted in Abuja.