Nigeria DRE Fund reaches commercial milestone

Nigeria Distributed Renewable Energy Fund, a $300 million investment vehicle, has reached a commercial milestone, signalling the start of active capital deployment to scale renewable energy solutions across Nigeria.

The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Africa50 and Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) unveiled the fund on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, according to a statement on Monday.

The fund is designed to support Nigeria’s efforts to expand reliable, affordable, and sustainable electricity access and to contribute to Mission 300, an initiative aimed at connecting 300 million people across Africa to electricity by 2030.

The commercial launch signals growing market readiness and investor confidence in Nigeria’s distributed renewable energy sector,” said the statement, adding that the fund represented an important step towards mobilising the scale of capital required to expand off-grid and distributed renewable energy solutions to reach underserved communities and businesses.

The fund’s operationalisation was coming at a critical moment in Nigeria and the wider African continent. “Distributed renewable energy solutions, including mini-grids and standalone solar systems, have an increasingly important role to play in closing energy access gaps, supporting economic activities and strengthening energy security,” it added.

Meanwhile, Aminu Umar-Sadiq, NSIA’s chief executive, described the development as a major milestone for Nigeria’s renewable energy sector.

Alain Ebobissé, group chief executive officer of Africa50, said the strength of the partnership behind the fund was key to its potential impact.

“What sets the Nigeria DRE Fund apart is the strength of the partnership. It involves NSIA’s local market expertise, Africa50’s pan-African investment and fund management capabilities, SEforALL’s energy-access leadership, and the World Bank’s global energy thought leadership and catalytic capital,” he said.

Mr Ebobissé said the partners were working to turn Nigeria’s energy needs into investable opportunities while developing a model that could be scaled across Africa.

Damilola Ogunbiyi, chief executive officer and special representative of the UN secretary-general for SEforALL, said the fund would support Nigeria’s electricity access ambitions and the objectives of Mission 300.

“By creating a dedicated financing mechanism to scale distributed renewable energy, Nigeria is demonstrating how country-led action can translate Mission 300’s ambition into concrete investment and connections,” she said.

Ashish Khanna, the director-general of the International Solar Alliance, said the fund represented an important milestone in efforts to develop investment platforms for private sector-led distributed renewable energy across Africa.

Mr Khanna said the Nigeria initiative could demonstrate how innovative financial structures could mobilise capital, support local market development and accelerate progress towards universal energy access. He said that the model and associated knowledge transfer between Africa and India could be replicated in other African countries to help unlock investment at scale.

Anna Bjerde, managing director of operations at the World Bank Group, said reliable and affordable energy was essential for job creation and economic transformation in Africa.

Ms Bjerde said the World Bank was a founding partner of the initiative, adding that its initial $25 million contribution from the International Development Association reflected its commitment to expanding energy access. NAN