The Federal Government has commissioned a 1-megawatt (MW) solar mini-grid with a 2.4-megawatt-hour (MWh) battery energy storage system in Tallasse, Balanga Local Government Area of Gombe State, while commencing construction of four interconnected mini-grid projects with a combined capacity of 16MW.
The commissioning, held on Saturday, also marked the groundbreaking for projects serving Dukku, Bajoga, Kumo and Kaltungo communities, as the government expands distributed renewable energy infrastructure across the country.
The Tallasse project also includes productive-use equipment designed to connect reliable electricity with agriculture, processing, transportation and local enterprise.
Gombe solar project targets rural businesses
Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya described the project as an outcome of the partnership between the Gombe State Government and the Federal Government through the Rural Electrification Agency (REA).
He said the infrastructure would help translate electricity access into economic opportunities for residents, particularly those working in agriculture and related businesses.
- “For us in Gombe State, this project is significant because it connects energy directly to the economic strengths of our people. Balanga is an agricultural community. When reliable electricity is combined with rice milling, groundnut processing, flour production and electric mobility, we are not merely lighting homes, we are strengthening an entire local economy,” Yahaya said.
The project includes electric tricycles, an electric groundnut oil processing plant, a modular electric rice mill and electric flour-grinding machines.
The governor also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Minister of Power and REA leadership for supporting the initiative.
He described the partnership as an example of how cooperation between federal and state governments could deliver infrastructure with direct benefits for communities.
REA shifts focus to economic impact
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of REA, Abba Aliyu, said the 1MW Tallasse project serves 6,028 connections, comprising 5,929 residential units, 84 commercial connections and 15 dedicated nodes for productive economic activities.
Aliyu said the agency was moving beyond measuring rural electrification by the number of connections and megawatts installed to assessing the economic outcomes enabled by electricity.
- “For many years, the conversation around electricity access has understandably focused on how many people we connect and how many megawatts we deploy. Those numbers remain important. But the next frontier is to ask a more fundamental question: what happens after the electricity arrives?” he said.
He added that the productive-use equipment was intended to help farmers process produce locally, support new businesses and improve productivity and income.
Aliyu also highlighted the role of the 2.4MWh battery storage system in improving electricity reliability.
- “Access without reliability limits economic impact. This is why we are increasingly integrating storage, intelligent monitoring, productive-use equipment and sustainable operating models into our interventions. We are building electricity ecosystems, not simply installing power plants,” he said.
FG expands renewable energy projects
Minister of Power Joseph Tegbe said the Gombe projects formed part of the Tinubu administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, aimed at expanding access to economic opportunities regardless of location.
He cited renewable energy projects in Kwara State, the Federal Capital Territory and Oyo State as evidence of the government’s efforts to extend electricity infrastructure to more communities.
- “This is the practical expression of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda: taking investment to communities and expanding the foundations of shared prosperity,” Tegbe said.
The Gombe commissioning follows the groundbreaking of a 17.7MW interconnected mini-grid project in Iwo, Ibadan, Oyo State, earlier in the week.
The Federal Government is pursuing distributed renewable energy alongside conventional grid expansion, including interconnected and isolated mini-grids, embedded generation, solar home systems and dedicated renewable power projects for public institutions and productive communities.
- In September, the government commissioned a 3.3MWp solar hybrid mini-grid with 2MWh of battery storage at Yakubu Gowon University, formerly the University of Abuja, to improve electricity supply to the institution.
- REA also reported in April that Nigeria’s domestic solar panel manufacturing capacity had increased to 300MW from 120MW two years earlier, with a 3.7-gigawatt project pipeline under development.
- In February, REA signed a memorandum of understanding with Lotus Bank for a N100 billion revolving credit facility to expand renewable energy access in underserved communities. The agency also signed an agreement with ECOWAS to deploy solar systems to 15 public institutions under the Regional Off-Grid Electricity Access Project.
These initiatives form part of the government’s broader effort to expand electricity access and support a commercially sustainable distributed renewable energy market.