‘Nigeria endowed with renewable energy sources to meet Net zero carbon emission’

The chairman Board of Trustees of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Association Alliance, Professor Abubakar Sambo, says Nigeria is endowed with renewable energy sources to meet its Net zero carbon emissions target by 2060.

Speaking at the maiden National Conference of the alliance in Abuja, Sambo noted that the Nigerian Energy Transition Plan, presented at the November 2021 Glasgow Climate Change Conference, stated that Nigeria will attain Net Zero carbon emission by 2060 through more use of gas and solar energy for power supply.

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He said Nigeria is very well endowed with renewable energy resources and opportunities for tapping into them for the benefit of Nigerians.

He, however, explained that the Net Zero Carbon Emission is not synonymous with stopping the use of fossil fuels.

“It means that while the transition is on fossil fuels can be used but the emissions should be absorbed by a number of techniques like instituting a circular carbon economy and developing forestry plantations which have long been confirmed to serve as effective carbon sinks.”

In his keynote address, just before declaring the conference open, Minister of power, Engineer Abubakar Aliyu, said President Muhammadu Buhari was committed to Net Zero by 2060, adding that the projection is not ambitious because we need to catch up with other countries.

“President Buhari came in 2015 and saw that we were left behind, we now had to double our effort. All the projections here, we have the strength and the wherewithal if we come together as a country.

“Our major challenge is how to fund these projects and I see those challenges as business opportunities for people to come in and bring in the finances.”

In his goodwill message, Deputy Ambassador of the German Embassy in Nigeria, Martin Huth urged Nigeria to work on the diversification of its energy sources.

Huth said Germany is ready to assist Nigeria to improve its electricity access through various programmes on climate change and renewable energy such as the Nigeria Energy Support programme.

“So what we really have to work on is a long term strategy that involves renewable energy, clean energy in the short term, midterm and long term vision to go beyond gas and move to solar and wind energy and off course hydrogen and at the end to become self sufficient.”