Yusuf Suleiman, a renewable energy entrepreneur, has advocated the establishment of a special bank for energy, to support renewable energy enterprise.
Suleiman made the call in an interview in Abuja on Tuesday.
He advised the government to look at the possibility of setting up a specific bank for energy or incorporating energy department into all existing commercial banks.
“The government should make available consumer financing; an average consumer is willing to spend N1, 000 every day for fuel but he don’t have N360, 000 to do a solar solution.
“If you can find somebody that can give him N360, 000 to do solar, he wouldn’t mind paying that 1,000 every day for the next one year.
“When he has paid off, he will continue to enjoy his solar solution.
“There is need for consumer financing to be supported by the government, “ the expert said.
Suleiman said that the government should also support renewable energy business by allowing investors to access dollar at the CBN rate.
He said that such intervention would bring down the cost of solar deployment by 50 per cent.
According to him, those in renewable energy business source fund from parallel market to import materials.
In addition, he urged the government to reduce taxes on renewable energy products, including batteries which now attracts 20 per cent tax.
“ When batteries are charged at 20 per cent, if those duties are removed, that will further crash down the cost of our deployment by 20 per cent.
“Solar can really be made cheap but there is need for some government intervention to make it cheaper. “
Suleiman appealed to Nigerians to embrace renewable energy for domestic and industrial purposes.
According to him, solar solutions for industrial purposes are easier and cheaper than for domestic purposes.
“The big companies don’t need storage; they can programme their operations when the sun is out so they need minimal battery storage.
“Battery storage is more than half the cost of solar solution so where you don’t need battery storage, get the power straight from the sun, feed it or inject it into the mini grid.
“You feed it into the mini grid where the factories are operating and that is even simpler, cheaper and effective.
“Averaging with 1.5 million US dollars, I can give you one megawatt solar farm to power your industry, “ the expert added.
Suleiman said that the cost of renewables was two or three times cheaper than other sources of energy, as such government should adopt it into the national power agenda.
“If you allow me access funding for a 24-year plan, I can give you energy for 30 Naira per kilowatt from solar and that is already half of the price of power from grid.
“On a 10 year plan, I can march up with its cost to get power from the grid, and remember that the grid power is not there all the time.
“If you add grid and generator, the cost of your energy is like two or three times of average cost if you are getting power from the grid consistently, “ the expert said. (NAN)
