Nigeria has increased its domestic solar panel manufacturing capacity to 300 megawatts (MW), up from 120 MW two years ago, the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) said.
Dr. Abba Aliyu, REA Managing Director, announced this during a webinar organized by the African Association of Energy Journalists and Publishers (AJERAP) on Wednesday in Lagos. The agency is targeting a total of 3.7 gigawatts (GW) in the pipeline, aiming to position Nigeria as a renewable energy hub for West Africa.
Aliyu noted that countries such as Mozambique, Benin, and Niger are adopting the REA power access model. He attributed the growth to deliberate government policies under President Bola Tinubu, designed to attract private sector investment.
“We have moved from about 120 MW of local manufacturing capacity to roughly 300 MW today, with 3.7 GW in the pipeline. This strategy builds investor confidence and attracts private capital into the sector,” he said.
In 2025, Nigeria recorded $425 million in investments for eight renewable energy manufacturing facilities. Locally manufactured solar panels are now being exported from Lagos to Accra, Ghana, signaling Nigeria’s emergence as a regional hub.
Aliyu highlighted the impact of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s 2026 Mini-Grid Regulations, which increased allowable capacity for interconnected mini-grids to 10 MW, boosting investor confidence. He added that these regulations simplify licensing, environmental assessments, and could enable cross-border electricity trade.
He emphasized Nigeria’s Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-Up (DARES) program as the largest publicly funded renewable energy access initiative globally, aiming to connect over 2.5 million households, deploy 1,350 mini-grids, and provide electricity to 17.5 million Nigerians. The $750 million program is expected to leverage an additional $1.1 billion in private investment.
“The program’s structure has unlocked significant private financing and is setting a benchmark for renewable energy deployment across the region,” Aliyu said.
