A landmark power lifeline is underway for Enugu residents as Peter Mbah, the state governor, has thrown his full administrative weight behind the newly proposed 100-megawatt Solar Hybrid Interconnected Networks for Enugu (SHINE) programme.
The initiative, valued at $220 million (approximately ₦310 billion), represents the first major investment breakthrough brokered by the state’s Climate and Development Investment Platform (CDIP).
The partnership was advanced during a high-level strategic meeting with Eauxwell Nigeria Limited at the Government House. Under the phased three-year plan, Eauxwell will deploy solar hybrid plants across peri-urban clusters connected to the existing distribution network.
The project will kick off with a 10MW plant featuring battery storage designed for the Eha-Amufu and Owo cluster, servicing thirty communities across two local feeders at an estimated cost of ₦31 billion ($22 million).
The breakthrough engagement was facilitated by CDIP, led by Chukwumerije Okereke, a Professor and the Governor’s Special Adviser on Climate Policy and Sustainable Development. The session showcased CDIP’s core mandate: connecting private investors with critical government decisions, regulatory alignment, and community support.
The meeting assembled top-tier state leadership, including the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Chidiebere Onyia, who chairs the CDIP Steering Committee; key state commissioners, project delivery advisers, and energy regulators.
Olufemi Akinyelure, Head of the Nigeria Electrification Programme at the Rural Electrification Agency, further underscored national synergy and participated virtually.
Akinyelure briefed stakeholders on integrating the project with the Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) framework, which will support Eauxwell’s blended financing structure of equity, debt, and federal grant funding.
Governor Mbah welcomed the initiative as an economic boost, emphasising that Enugu’s recent assumption of regulatory oversight over its intra-state electricity market must foster a dynamic, competitive energy sector.
Placing consumer welfare at the core of the discussions, the governor closely scrutinised Eauxwell’s financial models and tariff structures. He insisted that while reasonable cost recovery is vital for investors, electricity pricing must remain strictly affordable for ordinary households and local businesses. Eauxwell assured that final tariffs will be meticulously finalised in direct collaboration with state electricity regulators.
Governor Mbah also challenged the developers to compress their implementation timelines, pledging the state’s total backing to fast-track regulatory approvals, land arrangements, and commercial agreements.
For residents, commercial shops, and agricultural processing hubs across the target clusters, the SHINE programme promises a steady and dependable power supply designed to drive grassroots economic development.
The meeting also addressed progress on the separate Aninri electrification project, with state machinery actively moving the initiative toward construction in the coming weeks.
The rapid, multi-agency response witnessed at the meeting highlights the strategic success of Governor Mbah’s earlier decision to house CDIP directly under his office.
With political will aligned with investor readiness, Enugu State is poised to transform the ₦310 billion investment into tangible energy access that drives sustainable growth.
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