NSIA, partners inaugurate $500m fund to boost renewable energy in Nigeria

Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) has partnered with Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), International Solar Alliance (ISA), and Africa50 to inaugurate a 500 million dollar Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE) Nigeria Fund.

The Africa50 made this known in a statement on Friday.

It said that the agreement was signed at the SEforALL Global Forum in Barbados to improve energy access and stability in Nigeria.

Supreme news reports that the fund will provide financial solutions to attract private investment while addressing challenges like currency volatility, tariff structures, and limited local financing.

SEforALL Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Damilola Ogunbiyi, said that the initiative was key to achieving universal energy access.

“The launch of the DRE Nigeria Fund marks a pivotal moment in our collective efforts to address Africa’s energy access challenges.

“The fund will support mini-grids, solar home systems, commercial and industrial power solutions, and energy storage technologies,” she said.

The NSIA Managing Director/CEO, Aminu Umar-Sadiq, said that the fund, co-managed by NSIA and Africa50, would serve as a model for other African nations.

Umar-Sadiq said that it would also attract global investment and drive industrial development.

“The DRE Africa Platform represents another step in unlocking Africa’s renewable energy potential,” he said.

Similarly, ISA Director-General-Elect, Ashish Khanna, said that the fund would receive catalytic capital from the ISA’s Africa Solar Facility.

Khanna said that there was the need for private investments in Africa’s energy sector.

“We will begin with Nigerian homes and businesses and then expand to other African countries,” he said.

Africa50 Chief Executive Officer, Alain Ebobisse, called the partnership a game-changer in solving Africa’s energy access gap.

“This collaboration aims to unlock financing instruments to fund projects at scale.

“The fund is expected to mobilise institutional capital and create public-private partnerships to scale renewable energy investments in Nigeria and across Africa ” Ebobisse said.

Supreme news reports that Africa50 is a pan-African infrastructure investor and asset manager that contributes to Africa’s growth by developing and investing in bankable projects.

It catalyses public sector capital, and mobilises private sector funding, with differentiated financial returns and impact.