Assessment of Renewable Energy Potentials of The Northeast Geopolitical Region of Nigeria

Abstract

Energy is key to the socioeconomic and sustainable development of any society, the northeast geopolitical region of Nigeria is the region with the least access to grid electricity and the region with the least per capita electricity consumption in Nigeria. A desk research was undertaken to assess the renewable energy resources available in the region and their viability for the generation of electricity to meet the needs of the region and those of other regions in the country. Five renewable energy resources were appraised: solar; wind power; hydroelectric power; municipal solid waste and biomass. It was found that 1,278 GW of electricity can be generated with the use of photovoltaic solar technology. It was also found that wind power technology is feasible in two of the states in the region. The study also revealed that up to 5,125 MW of electricity can be recovered from two states in the region when hydroelectric power technology is used. All six states in the region were found to be viable for the generation of electricity from municipal solid waste and biomass with each having a potential of generating up to 1,249 MW and 4,752 MW of electricity respectively. The study suggested that since each of the states has at least two different renewable energy resources, then there is a need for friendly policies to be made that will attract investors to exploit these resources for the benefit of the region and nation at large.