70m Nigerians Without Power: Mission 300 Pushes Distributed Solar As Fast-Track Solution
By NINI NDUONOFIT-AKOH
NIGERIA could accelerate efforts to close its electricity access gap by expanding distributed solar systems, the Technical Lead for Mission 300 in Nigeria, Mr. Dayo Olowoniyi, has said.
Olowoniyi said more than 70 million Nigerians still lacked access to electricity, making decentralised renewable energy critical to the country’s effort to reach underserved communities.
He spoke at a renewable energy product launch organised by Sun King on Friday night at the Lagos Marriott Hotel, Ikeja.
Solar Seen as Fastest Route to Underserved Communities
According to Olowoniyi, Nigeria recorded more than five million new off-grid electricity connections between 2025 and 2026.
He described distributed solar as one of the fastest ways to extend electricity to communities that remain poorly served by conventional power infrastructure.
The development is particularly important for rural and low-income communities, where extending the national grid can be costly and technically difficult.
Olowoniyi said Nigeria must therefore combine grid expansion with off-grid and decentralised solutions if it wants to close the access gap at scale.
DARES Supports Renewable Energy Deployment
He also highlighted the role of the Federal Government’s Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-Up, or DARES, programme.
The programme, implemented by the Rural Electrification Agency, provides capital subsidies to renewable energy companies to reduce the cost of solar solutions for Nigerians.
The initiative receives $750 million in support from the World Bank.
According to Olowoniyi, the funding is helping renewable energy companies deploy solar equipment in rural and low-income communities that might otherwise struggle to afford such systems.
He stressed, however, that government alone could not deliver the scale of investment required.
“The Federal Government cannot do it alone,” he said, calling for stronger participation by state governments and private-sector operators.
Mission 300 Tracks Nigeria’s Progress
Mission 300 is designed to connect more than 300 million Africans to electricity.
Olowoniyi said the initiative was monitoring Nigeria’s progress through new electricity connections, solar home systems and productive-use equipment.
Such equipment can provide power not only for household lighting but also for income-generating activities.
For businesses in underserved communities, reliable electricity can mean the difference between operating productively and depending on expensive alternatives such as petrol and diesel generators.
Olowoniyi said sustained access to capital would remain essential to maintaining the pace of new connections.
He also called for stronger private-sector participation to ensure that the gains recorded in off-grid deployment continue.
Renewable Energy Can Power MSMEs
Ms. Titilayo Oshodi, Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Climate Change and Circular Economy, said renewable energy could also play a major role in improving the productivity of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
She linked reliable electricity to activities ranging from food preservation and water supply to education and general business operations.
According to Oshodi, businesses could use renewable energy to operate freezers and other essential appliances without depending entirely on an unreliable electricity supply.
She said wider access to renewable energy would also support Lagos State’s climate and sustainable-development objectives.
However, affordability remains a major challenge.
Oshodi said financing arrangements that allow households and businesses to pay for renewable energy systems in instalments could make the technology more accessible to people at the lower end of the socio-economic ladder.
She added that greater deployment among MSMEs could stimulate commercial activity and support economic growth across Lagos.
Solar Demand Surges
The growing demand for alternative energy was also reflected in Sun King’s sales figures.
Mr. Lisbon Ogunsanmi, the company’s Country Business Manager in Nigeria, said monthly sales had increased from about 3,000 solar systems to around 100,000 units.
He said the company had trained at least 200 installers and operated more than 136 shops, supported by after-sales teams across the country.
Despite the growth, Ogunsanmi identified affordability as one of the biggest barriers to wider adoption.
Many households and businesses, he said, could not afford to pay the full cost of a solar system at once.
Financing models that spread payments over time could therefore allow more customers to adopt renewable energy while easing the pressure of upfront costs.
Pay-As-You-Go Model Targets Affordability
Mr. Omoyemi Tuga, Vice President, Pay-As-You-Go Sales, West and Central Africa, said Sun King had introduced a 5 KVA Power Hub that could be expanded to 30 KVA.
The company also introduced a 210-litre Power Freeze for households and businesses.
Tuga said the Power Freeze could operate on solar energy during the day and battery power at night.
The Power Hub, meanwhile, could serve homes, businesses, schools and hospitals.
Under the company’s EasyBuy financing model, customers make an initial payment and spread the balance through weekly or monthly payments over one to two years, depending on the product.
Tuga said customers could obtain the 5 KVA Power Hub with a down payment from ₦340,000.
He added that the Power Freeze would become commercially available soon.
Financing Remains Central to Energy Access
Catherine Mudachi, Sun King’s Vice President, Global Affairs and Marketing, said the financing model was designed to allow small businesses to pay for energy equipment from their business income rather than make the full payment upfront.
She said customers could work towards ownership while spreading the cost over time.
The approach reflects a broader challenge in Nigeria’s energy transition.
Access to technology alone does not guarantee access to electricity.
For millions of households and small businesses, the decisive question remains whether they can afford the equipment and the financing terms attached to it.
Mudachi therefore stressed the importance of collaboration among government, private-sector operators and financiers.
Such partnerships, she said, would be critical to expanding reliable and affordable electricity access, particularly among underserved households and businesses.
For Mission 300, the challenge now extends beyond connecting more Nigerians. The country must also ensure that new connections remain affordable, reliable and economically useful.
Distributed solar offers one pathway to that goal, but sustained investment, financing and cooperation across government and the private sector will determine how quickly Nigeria can turn new connections into lasting energy access.
