James Emejo in Abuja
The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) of Nigeria and Mente Energy Limited have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to formally commence the Renewable Energy Localisation and Industrialisation Programme (RELIP).
RELIP is a national programme designed to structure Nigeria’s rapidly growing renewable-energy market to catalyse investment, generate skilled industrial employment and build a domestic clean-energy manufacturing base in partnership with global capital.
The programme which is led by REA and guided by the Nigeria-first principles, seeks to establish data, institutional architecture and demand signals required to allow capital of every origin – Nigerian, international, development finance and private institutional – to invest in the country’s clean-energy value chain with greater confidence and at greater scale.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Abuja, Managing Director/Chief Executive, REA, Mr. Abba Aliyu, said, “Nigeria has built significant momentum in decentralised renewable energy but until now, the economic value of that deployment has largely flowed offshore.
“RELIP changes that. By organising our national demand and building the institutional architecture to support domestic manufacturing, we are creating the conditions for investment, jobs and industrial growth to take root on Nigerian soil.
“REA is proud to lead this programme and we welcome partners – Nigerian and international – who share our commitment to building a clean-energy industrial base that serves Nigeria first.”
On his part, Founder/Managing Partner of Mente Energy, Tolu Osekita, said, “Nigeria’s renewable-energy market is one of the most significant industrial opportunities of this decade.
“What RELIP does is put structure around that opportunity so that capital of every origin can invest here with greater confidence and at greater scale.
“Grounded in Nigeria-first principles, this is about catalysing the maximum economic opportunity for our country – factories, jobs, investment and industrial growth built on Nigerian soil, in partnership with the world. We are proud to stand alongside the REA in leading this work.”
The MoU establishes a five-year framework for strategic collaboration with RELIP identified as the first priority workstream.
According to Aliyu, Nigeria remains Africa’s most dynamic renewable-energy market. Across both the public and private sectors, adoption is accelerating – with millions of solar home systems, hundreds of mini-grids and growing commercial and industrial uptake.
He stated that in a shifting global energy landscape where supply-chain resilience and energy sovereignty have become strategic imperatives, Nigeria’s clean-energy deployment represents both a national achievement and a major economic opportunity.
The growth had been enabled by the contribution of international partners – which continued to be a valued and important part of Nigeria’s clean-energy story.
However, RELIP is designed to build on that foundation.
Essentially, a structured, well-signaled renewable-energy market is expected to attract long-term investment from domestic and international sources, and create skilled employment across Nigerian manufacturing corridors.
It aimed to grow a domestic supply chain of component suppliers and service businesses, strengthen Nigeria’s broader economic diversification agenda and position the country to serve regional clean-energy demand across West Africa over time.
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