From Magnus Eze, Abuja
A United Kingdom-based energy expert has said Nigeria can generate about 1800 megawatts (MW) of electricity from wind.
The senior lecturer in Petroleum Engineering, University of Portsmouth, Dr. Mohammed Hassan-Sayed, who also projected that the country could generate 60,000MW of electricity from renewables by 2050, if the potential is fully harnessed, explained how wind farms on land and the continental shelf could generate 1000MW and 800MW respectively.
In a presentation titled, “Powering the Future of Nigeria”, to the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) in Abuja, Hassan-Sayed stated that the nation needed a fundamental action towards 100 per cent renewable energy through a strategic policy direction anchored on a progressive renewable energy masterplan.
According to him, “on land, 10 wind farms each equipped with 100 units of 1MW capacity wind turbines will give a cumulative of 1000MW of power. Regarding offshore wind potential, the Nigerian continental shelf is about 42,285Km. So, establishing two wind farms with 200 units of 2MW wind turbines will give a cumulative of 800MW in total capacity with enough space for all marine activities.”
He added that offshore wind power has higher potential due to strong ocean currents.
The energy expert averred that Nigeria had not fully exploited its hydro-power potential and, therefore, called for establishment of small and mini hydro power schemes with potential of 5KW and 20MW around rivers and run off streams to complement the existing capacity.
The Jebba and Kainji dams, he said, have capacities of 570MW and 760MW respectively while the Shiroro Dam has a capacity of 600MW, bringing the total existing capacity for hydro-power in Nigeria to 1,930MW.
Given that 63 per cent of Nigeria’s land space is occupied by water, he said at 11W/m2 potential of hydro-power, the country has a potential of generating 6,396,390MW of hydro-power.