The Federal Government has announced that over $400 million in new renewable energy investment commitments will be formalised within the next two days, aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s renewable energy manufacturing value chain and boosting local innovation.

Vice President Kashim Shettima disclosed this on Tuesday at the inaugural Nigerian Renewable Energy Innovation Forum 2025, held in Abuja. He said the investments were mobilised through engagements facilitated by the forum and would fund solar panel assembly plants, smart meter production lines, and battery storage and recycling facilities across multiple states.

“Over the next two days, agreements will be signed, partnerships will be forged and a national roadmap consolidated,” Shettima said. “I am pleased to announce that through engagements under this forum, more than $400 million in new investment commitments have been mobilised into Nigeria’s renewable energy manufacturing value chain.”

According to him, the projects are expected to create more than 1,500 direct jobs and demonstrate growing international confidence in Nigeria’s clean energy industrialisation drive.

“These investments reflect global confidence in our clean energy vision,” he added. “We must ensure that the outcomes of this forum do not end in communiqués but are translated into factories, jobs, electrified schools, thriving rural enterprises and resilient communities powered by clean energy.”

The forum, themed “Implementing the Nigeria PACE Policy: Facilitating Local Content Development and Manufacturing in the Renewable Energy Ecosystem,” seeks to deepen local participation in Nigeria’s energy transition agenda.

Shettima said Nigeria’s energy transition presents an investment opportunity of over $410 billion between now and 2060, with $23 billion needed in the short term to expand energy access and connect millions of Nigerians still living in energy poverty.

He emphasised that the administration’s long-term goal is to develop a 277-gigawatt power system by 2060, anchored on innovation, investment, and local capacity development.

“This is an invitation to establish Nigeria as the hub for renewable energy manufacturing in Africa,” Shettima stated. “From solar panel assembly lines in Lagos to battery recycling hubs along our industrial corridors, Nigeria must not only participate in this revolution, but lead it.”

The Vice President reaffirmed President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to consolidating energy transition policies by enhancing incentives for local manufacturing, streamlining regulations, and deepening collaboration with states, investors, and development partners.

He commended the Federal Ministry of Power and the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) for advancing decentralised and inclusive energy policies that have expanded electricity access in underserved areas.

Shettima stressed that private sector participation and subnational collaboration were crucial to achieving Nigeria’s clean energy ambitions.

“We count on our state governments to champion renewable energy industrial processes and serve as engines of green growth across the federation,” he said. “This forum must prove it is here for action, not mere deliberations.”

Highlighting Nigeria’s comparative advantage, Shettima said the country possesses the minerals, manpower, and market required to lead Africa’s clean energy revolution, with its youthful population serving as a key driver of innovation and growth.

“We have too much at stake to be left behind,” he declared. “Nigeria is ready to harness her resources, unlock her capital and lead Africa’s green industrial revolution.”

The Vice President also assured Nigerians that current economic hardships would soon ease, as the government’s ongoing reforms begin to yield results.

“Our economy has turned the corner,” he said. “The pains of saturation will soon be over. We are on a path to sustainable growth, and there is a silver lining on the horizon.”

The two-day forum is expected to conclude with the signing of multiple investment agreements, establishing Nigeria as a growing hub for renewable energy manufacturing and innovation in Africa.