The House of Representatives Committee on Renewable Energy has invited stakeholders to an investigative hearing on the $2bn renewable energy grants and investments in Nigeria.
According to the Committee, the investment has not had a proportional impact on the nation’s energy security challenges.
In July 2024, President Bola Tinubu disclosed at the Africa Natural Resource and Energy Investment Summit in Nigeria that the nation had attracted over $2bn of investment in the sector in the past decade.
“Over the past decade, Nigeria has attracted over $2bn in investment in the renewable energy sector, making it a fast-growing part of the economy. Our commitment is to continue on this path and attract more private sector involvement in the renewable energy space, including manufacturing locally produced solar panels and batteries.
“By encouraging local production of equipment, we can reduce implementation costs, thereby lowering the threshold for electrification,” the President was quoted as saying.
Scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, 5 and 6 November 2024, the investigative hearing follows the mandate given to the Committee on 6 June 2024 to investigate Ministries, Departments, and Agencies involved in investments, procurement, and receipt of grants for renewable energy sector development.
In a statement issued on Sunday by the Committee Chairman, Victor Ogene, in Abuja, the probe will cover the period from 2015 to 2024.
The lawmaker said the House was shocked that “Despite the government attracting over $2bn in renewable energy investments in the past decade, as reported by the Rural Electrification Agency in 2023, there has been no noticeable improvement in the sector.
“The House of Representatives was alarmed that the dysfunctional electricity generation and supply system persists, contrary to the objectives behind government investments and grants aimed at developing the renewable energy sector. Hence, the resolution to probe these investments to determine the integrity of the procurement and execution processes.”
He noted that the probe is not a witch-hunt but an exercise to discourage shady dealings and promote transparency and objectivity in managing government or public resources.
The House’s resolutions followed the adoption of a motion titled “Need to Investigate Investments in the Renewable Energy Sector and Foreign Grants Received from 2015 Till Date,” sponsored by the lawmaker representing Oshodi-Isolo II Federal Constituency, Lagos State, Mr Okey-Joe Onuakalusi.
Leading the debate, the lawmaker said the parliament was aware that poor electricity generation, transmission, and distribution pose a significant threat to the nation’s industrial and technological development goals.
According to the lawmakers, successive governments since 2015 have made substantial investments and attracted multimillion-dollar foreign grants for Nigeria’s renewable energy subsector to create a viable and sustainable alternative energy supply.
They noted that in December 2023, the World Bank approved a $750m facility to boost renewable energy in Nigeria, aiming to provide over 17.5 million Nigerians with improved access to electricity through distributed renewable energy solutions.
They also noted that in 2020, the Federal Government launched a $200m renewable energy project, the ‘Nigeria Electrification Project,’ targeted at providing off-grid energy to over 500,000 people across 105,000 households in rural communities, funded by the African Development Bank.
Agencies invited to the public hearing include, but are not limited to, the Rural Electrification Agency, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
Also invited are the Country Representative of the European Union, Union Bank Plc (Compliance Department), Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Federal Ministry of Power, Energy Commission of Nigeria, and Federal Ministry of Finance.
Other invited entities include the Niger Delta Power Holding Company, Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, Federal Ministry of Environment and Ecological Management, Federal Ministry of Petroleum (Gas Resources), Niger Delta Development Commission, United States Agency for International Development, Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Accountant General of the Federation, and Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Associations, among others.

Rosicrucian Order, English Grand Lodge for West Africa, has urged Rosicrucians all over the world to contribute their quota towards the political and economic development of their countries.
The Order, which gave the task at the AMORC Convention, Port Harcourt 2024, also called on them to remain exemplary in their conducts.
It charged them to radiate love wherever they find themselves as the theme of the convention was “Universal Love.”
Declaring the convention open, the Imperator and President Supreme Grand Lodge (AMORC), Frater Claudio Mazzucco, urged members to ensure a better society for present and future generations.
He also described the convention as historic, and charged them to continue to radiate love to all humanity.
Meanwhile in his message, the Grand Master-designate, Eugenius Idiodi, urged the delegates to reflect on the theme of the convention.
“As we come together under the guiding theme of ‘universal love’ let us pause for a moment to reflect on the profound significance of this gathering and the journey that has brought us to this point”.
Idiodi also described members of the Order as “seeds of various kinds sown into the soil, each with the potentials to bloom into something unique and beautiful”.
“Yet no matter their individual forms, all these seeds share common nurturing light of the sun, the sustaining nourishment of the Earth and the gentle touch of water”, he added.
Grand Master-designate said each member of the Order is like a seed which has the potentials to blossom into its highest level.
In his words, “And just as the seeds in the garden depend on the forces of nature, we too require the nourishing power of universal love to flourish, not as individuals but as a global community bound by the sacred principles of the Rosicrucian tradition”.
Idiodi described the convention as a symbol of collective journey, stressing that members are on a journey towards deeper understanding, compassion and enlightenment.
The Chairman of Local Organising Committee, Edwin I. Obani, said the convention would mark the golden jubilee of the English West Africa Lodge and the installation of the Grand Master-designate, Frater Eugenius Idiodi.
Obani said the event would afford members from the different countries in West Africa to rekindle the love of universal love.
Later at a press conference, members of the Order, including the Imperator and President Supreme Grand Lodge, Claudio Mazzucco, Frater Kenneth Idiodi, Eugenius Idiodi, Lucy Crawford Sandison and Olabimpe Giwa, said love remains the only antidote to solving all societal problems.
They urged members of the society to show love not only to fellow humans but also to mother earth.
The convention marks the Golden Jubilee of the West African Lodge.

By: John Bibor

The Federal Government has increased the compensation amount for property owners affected by the construction of the Section 1, Phase 1 of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
The government increased the compensation sum from the initial N8 billion to about N18 billion.
The Minister of Works, Sen. Dave Umahi, made the disclosure at a stakeholders engagement on the ongoing construction of Phase 1, Sections 1 and 11 of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, on Sunday in Lagos.
The Tide’s source reports that the decision was made to ensure fair compensation for the affected citizens.
Umahi said, “The Federal Executive Council initially approved N8 billion for this corridor, but today we are hitting N18 billion, and this is just for section one.”
He said that the compensation figures were justified, adding that they were determined by independent experts and would be publicly disclosed along with property details to ensure transparency.
Expressing the governments’ commitment to transparency, Umahi said that half of the compensation had already been made to the affected people.
The minister pledged to complete the compensation within the next 10 days.
However, some stakeholders, including lawyers and valuation experts, expressed dissatisfaction with the process.
They argued that the compensation was inadequate and that the process did not meet standards.
A lawyer and valuation expert, Mr Olusola Enitan, argued that the compensation fell short of standards.
Enitan said, “Somebody who had a home is now renting with no capacity to replace what was taken from him.”
He cited multiple Supreme Court decisions supporting the right to fair compensation.
He, however, praised Umahi’s efforts in road constructions and reconstructions.
Responding to the concerns, Umahi gave the assurance that the Federal Ministry of Works was working within the law and was open to reviewing any documents presented to facilitate swift compensation.
The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Works, Mr Akin Alabi, commended the ministry for transparency and stakeholders engagement in the compensation process.
He emphasised the importance of publishing compensation details to counter misinformation and promote accountability.
“There are mischief makers out there, but by the time we start to publish these things, some people will have to keep quiet,” he said.
The Tide source reports that the National Assembly Joint Committee on Works had been in Lagos for the past three days to inspect and assess road and bridge projects.
Umahi led the committee members on tour of the Third Mainland and Carter bridges, among others.