Solar energy, like earlier pointed out, is highest between November and April but always still fairly high all year round based on Nigeria’s tropical location. There are now high efficiency solar panels of up to 44% or more which is sure to increase with advances in technology. This will further review the cost of solar energy per kilowatt-hour downwards; the major financial implication comes in terms of initial capital investment. Solar energy takes up lots of space for module and batteries. The panels last on the average fifteen years with good maintenance. The batteries in tropical location usually don’t last as long as stated on the commercials but optimally up to seven years with good charging control and healthy ambient conditions. The relative higher cost of solar energy to fossil fuels has been due to the poor efficiency of solar panels. Fortunately, it looks very soon – in half a decade or less – the cost per Kilowatt-hour of solar energy will dip below that of gas and coal which will be a positive turn around in global energy matters in favour of renewable energies. The capital recovery period depends on the charges per kilowatts-hour fixed by electricity regulatory authorities. But based on current charges and Nigerian conditions, gestation period is typically between 18months to 2.5years.
Hydroelectric power has been Nigeria’s most reliable power source but has only been exploited in the larger scale. There is micro, small, and Pico-hydros depending on the size of the water head, speed, and volume of flow aside other supporting factors. For micro hydros, there are hundreds of potential sites across Nigeria. For large hydros, there are still dozens of sites identified and yet to be identified. There are, of cause, many more Pico-hydro sites than all the larger scales put together. But so far, Nigerians are yet to look in to the ideas of privately tapping micro hydro-electric potentials as individuals, villages, or communities without prejudice to extant laws. The technologies are much simpler than many think. Hydro produces the cheapest power. Completions usually depend mostly on the complexity of civil works and natural formations etc.
Biomass are the energies obtained from wastes like municipal solid wastes(MSW) and other forms of waste from industrial to residential sources. Over 60% of most municipal solid waste collections are thermally combustible, though the calorific values vary. In this case, waste can be become a commodity that households may even have to sell to waste power generation companies or their middlemen aside the recyclable commingles. The construction of biogas plants small or big and giant incinerators with efficient waste sorting processes and techniques make this very economic and attractive for investment, a win-win path to waste control.
The bio fuels are those obtained from plants such as vegetable oils plants, sugar cane, corn, cassava, etc. – mostly carbohydrates and oil based crops. But due to econo-political issues, this form of energy source may not be the best as to avoid stomachs competing with machines for the same crop or farming space. This has actually led, in part, to famine in some Eastern African countries. To this, Jatropha stands out as the most favoured bio fuel plant because it can be grown in abandoned lands with poor nutrients or in arid areas. The oil can be pressed out and used to power generators.
As pointed out, for the sake of business and point of entry challenges, the alternative energy sources to beam attention on are wind, solar, micro hydro-electric power, and biomass, biogas, and jatropha oil.
Taking care of telecoms masts, rural, and peri-urban areas with more renewable energies while the base load power station handle urban and industrial loads is a veritable way of managing the energy and power systems to optimal efficiency, which can most effectively happen through public, private, and individual partnership with the aid of attractive Feed-in-Tariff and renewable energy subsidies being instituted in transparent manner.
The Nigerian renewable energy industry is still very much pristine more so that the volume of renewable energy penetration is too insignificant to be captured as a percentage in the statistics of the national power mix. The opportunities available are enormous and great fortunes await venture capitalists, investors, and professionals who sincerely foray in to that field with determination. Let us look at some areas of investment in the sectors.
To be continued…
Christian Okwori
