By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja
The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) has entered into a N50 billion project financing partnership with Alpha Morgan Bank to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy projects and expand electricity access in unserved and underserved communities across Nigeria.
Under the agreement, Alpha Morgan Bank will make available up to N50 billion in financing to eligible renewable energy developers participating in REA-led programmes, including the Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) Project.
The facility will provide revolving loans of up to N10 billion per eligible developer, with proposed tenures of between 12 and 24 months, subject to the bank’s credit assessment and approval. Alpha Morgan Bank will provide up to 70 per cent counterpart funding for qualifying projects.
Under the framework, REA will facilitate project approvals, grant agreements and verification, while Alpha Morgan Bank will provide financing and financial advisory support to eligible developers.
The partnership is expected to accelerate renewable energy deployment, expand reliable electricity supply to households, businesses and public institutions, and support the Federal Government’s broader objective of achieving sustainable and inclusive electricity access across Nigeria.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Abuja on Friday, the Managing Director/CEO of REA, Engr. Abba Aliyu, said the partnership would help bridge a critical financing gap facing renewable energy developers and accelerate the delivery of electricity infrastructure across the country.
Aliyu said Nigeria’s electricity demand would continue to rise rapidly, driven by population growth, expanding electrification, digitalisation, artificial intelligence, data centres and the increasing electrification of transportation, agriculture, healthcare and other sectors.
He noted that the declining cost of solar power, coupled with advances in photovoltaic technology and battery storage, was positioning renewable energy, particularly solar, as a dominant source of future electricity generation.
According to him, Nigeria requires significantly more investment to close its electricity access and reliability gaps, making greater participation by domestic financial institutions critical to the success of the country’s energy transition.
“Access to finance remains critical to the successful delivery and scale-up of decentralised renewable energy projects,” Aliyu said, adding that the Alpha Morgan facility would provide developers with bridge financing needed to move projects from approval to implementation.
The REA boss said the partnership also presented an opportunity for Alpha Morgan Bank to participate beyond conventional project financing, pointing to emerging opportunities in renewable energy asset management, operation and maintenance, revenue collection, local manufacturing and financial inclusion.
He disclosed that REA would launch the Renewable Energy Asset Management Company (RAMCO), which is expected to support the sustainability of renewable energy assets, facilitate capital recycling and leverage existing assets to attract additional private-sector financing.
Emphasising the broader economic impact of decentralised renewable energy, Aliyu said mini-grid projects were already creating opportunities for fintech companies, energy service companies and local manufacturers, while enabling businesses in rural communities to access productive-use equipment.
He said REA was nearing completion of 288 megawatts of interconnected mini-grid projects, with commissioning expected to begin as early as November, after which another round of interconnected mini-grid projects would commence.
Speaking at the MoU signing, the Managing Director/CEO of Alpha Morgan Bank, Ade Buraimo, said the partnership was driven by the need to address financing constraints that have historically limited investment in Nigeria’s power sector.
Buraimo, who was represented at the ceremony by Alpha Morgan Bank’s Executive Director, Mrs Doyin Anyaehie, said the bank’s decision to commit N50 billion was not simply a financing exercise but an effort to generate measurable social and economic impact in rural communities.
He pointed to the effects of inadequate electricity on rural businesses, healthcare facilities and schools, noting that reliable power could unlock economic opportunities and improve livelihoods.
“Our success is going to go beyond this table, beyond just signing this MOU,” Buraimo said. “It’s what we can look to one or two years from now and say because we provided this financing, because this developer was able to develop their projects in the renewable power projects that they are building, this is the impact that we can point to.”
He said Alpha Morgan Bank was prepared to work with developers whose renewable energy projects had sound fundamentals, adding that the bank could structure financing and, where appropriate, subsidise some costs because of the wider national-development implications of expanding electricity access.
Buraimo said the bank would also explore opportunities beyond the immediate financing facility, describing the partnership with REA as the beginning of a broader relationship.
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