President Bola Tinubu’s continued support for increased investment in renewable energy development in the country has been reiterated.

Abdullahi Yakassai, special assistant to the president on community engagement, disclosed this during the Renewed Hope media tour’s visit to Lokoja.

The media team, led by Sunday Dare, special adviser to the president on media and public communications, was at the Confluence University of Science and Technology in Osara, Kogi, on Sunday to inspect projects by the federal and state governments.

Mr Yakassai said Mr Tinubu’s commitment represented a national investment in renewable energy development, human capital empowerment, clean energy innovation, and Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan.

The institution houses the Barefoot Renewable Energy College (BREC) and the Green Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Pilot Plant of the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN).

“It aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu through its focus on job creation, economic diversification, energy access, poverty reduction, and sustainable development,” Mr Yakassai said.

Also, O’tega Ogra, senior special assistant to the president on digital engagement, strategy, and new media, said the project is one of the president’s youth empowerment programmes.

“The college is designed to provide practical renewable energy training to Nigerians regardless of their educational background, equipping them with hands-on skills in solar and other renewable energy technologies.

“The initiative promotes self-reliance, entrepreneurship, employment generation, and rural development while building the skilled workforce required to support Nigeria’s growing renewable energy sector,” Mr Ogra said.

He said that the Green Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Pilot Plant aims to diversify Nigeria’s energy mix, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and advance clean energy solutions.

He said that the facility would test decentralised hydrogen systems as a reliable and environmentally friendly alternative to diesel generators, particularly in areas with unstable electricity supply.

Mr Ogra said that the complex is also expected to support Nigeria’s ambition of becoming a leading hydrogen hub in Africa by promoting research, innovation, and local capacity development in hydrogen technologies.

He added that the project would support Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan and the national target of achieving Net Zero emissions by 2060.

“Hydrogen is expected to play a critical role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions within the industrial, transportation, and power sectors.

“The commissioning of this Complex will symbolise Nigeria’s commitment to innovation, energy security, environmental sustainability, and the development of indigenous capacity for a prosperous future,” he said.

The BREC is a grassroots training facility launched in August 2024 by the ECN. It aims to equip rural and urban Nigerians with practical, hands-on skills in solar engineering and sustainable energy solutions.

Green Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Pilot Plant is Nigeria’s pioneering Green Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Pilot Plant.

It is the first of its kind in both Nigeria and West Africa and marks a significant step in the nation’s energy transition, aiming to revolutionise the energy sector and improve local food production.

The Renewed Hope national media tour is part of efforts to provide Nigerians with firsthand information about projects being implemented under Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

It also aims to highlight the impact of the government’s interventions on citizens’ lives across the country.

Mr Dare, at the end of the visit to the institution, said the two projects were part of the president’s overall educational and youth empowerment programmes and policies.

He said machinery for the take-off of the Barefoot Renewable Energy College is already on the ground for installation.

Abdulsalami Ozigi, Kogi Commissioner for Works, said the two projects, as well as the expansions at the institution, were a direct outcome of the opening up of the administration’s financial space.

He said that the road construction, which is also ongoing at the Lokoja-Auchi road, was due to the good collaboration of the federal and state governments.

“We have been lucky in Kogi State that Mr President has decided to listen to the core needs of our people in terms of road construction. It is a major lifeline of any economy,” he said. 

(NAN)