Energy Crisis in Nigeria: Need for Renewable Energy Mix

Nigeria is endowed with oil and natural resources but the country cannot be said to have ever had adequate supply of electricity in the history of its electricity generation. This might get worse, as the country’s population increases and economic development is calling for more demand of energy. The gradual diminishing of fossil fuels and the effort to save the eco-system from global warming has seen nations turning to alternative sources to meet their energy demands. It is therefore, imperative that renewable energy solutions be proffered to cater for Nigeria impending industrialization and its energy crisis which leaves many industries running at high cost and keeps many private homes in blackout. This paper discusses the potentials of renewable energy as an additional generation source to meet the energy demand of Nigerian populace. It focuses on the country’s energy crisis and how its natural resources can be harnessed to meet the nation’s energy demand while reducing global pollution. An analysis of projected energy capacities from the abundant renewable energy resources and how much of these resources are required to be harnessed in the proposed energy mix- to achieve over 60,000MW of power- was presented.