by Omono Okonkwo
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Nigerian Breweries Plc and CrossBoundary Energy have signed a $10 million solar power deal to develop the largest renewable energy project in Nigeria’s commercial and industrial sector.
The agreement, signed on Wednesday, November 2nd, will see CrossBoundary Energy build two solar and battery storage hybrid projects for Nigerian Breweries’ plants in Ibadan, Oyo State and Ama, Enugu State.
Nigerian Breweries’ Managing Director Hans Essaadi said the solar plants would help meet much of the company’s energy needs.
An exciting development: In a statement seen by Nairametrics, both Nigerian Breweries and CrossBoundary Energy described the deal as exciting. Mr Essaadi was quoted to have said:
“We are delighted to be a pioneer in the adoption of solar energy in Nigeria. These additional solar plants will provide a significant portion of our electricity needs and put us well on our way to carbon neutrality.”
The chief Commercial Officer of CrossBoundary Energy James Shoetan, also expressed excitement over the deal, saying:
“We are ecstatic to continue supporting Nigerian Breweries’ sustainability goals and to be providing multiple breweries with cleaner, cheaper power with no upfront investment or technical risk. CrossBoundary Energy is encouraged to see the expansion of the flagship project at NB Ibadan, thereby greatly increasing its sustainable footprint.”
Earlier flagship project: Nigerian Breweries Plc and CrossBoundary Energy earlier partnered to complete the first phase of the brewer’s solar power project in its Ibadan brewery, which was commissioned in 2021.
Capacity details: CrossBoundary Energy will expand the current renewable energy system at NB’s Ibadan Brewery from a 663-kilowatt peak (kWp) solar photovoltaic (PV) plant to a hybrid solar-plus-storage facility consisting of a 3-megawatt peak (MWp) solar PV system and a 2 MW/2 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS).
NB’s Ama brewery will receive a 4 MWp solar PV plant and a 2 MW/2 MWh BESS.
The solar plants combined will supply approximately 10 gigawatt hours (GWh) annually to the Ibadan and Ama breweries at a significant discount to their current cost of power.
This project will reduce the site’s CO2 emissions by 100,000 tonnes over the lifespan of the plants.
Financing details: CrossBoundary Energy will fully finance the development and construction of the Ibadan and Ama renewable energy facilities, and will operate both facilities as part of a 15-year solar services agreement with NB Plc.
Under the agreement, NB Plc will only pay for solar power produced, receiving a single monthly bill that incorporates all maintenance, monitoring, insurance, and financing costs.
Job creation: The projects will support the local employment of approximately 80 people during the construction phase, and at least two dozen people when the plants are operational.
The federal government has opened a bid for the concession of the 700-megawatt Zungeru Hydropower Project Plant, located 77km downstream of the Shiroro Hydropower Project in Niger State. In October 2022, the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) released a final request for qualification for the project concession.
In July 2022, the BPE said that the National Council on Privatization approved the strategy and work plan to fast-track the concession of the Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant (ZHPP). The enterprise had also said that after the release of the RFQ, it would release a shortlist of prospective investors, issue of RFQ, evaluation of technical proposals; and a shortlist of prospective investors for financial bid opening, as well as, set a date for the financial bid opening, all within a short timeframe.
International competitive tender: In the requested document, the BPE cited that the transaction is an international competitive tender. The government needs a concessionaire to operate, manage, maintain, and transfer the ZHPP project for 30 years. The concessionaire will ensure that the plant is run efficiently. Both parties will agree on financing and concession details.
According to the RFQ, the concession comes with commencement/upfront fees, an entry fee, and discounted annual concession fee of five years as well as a fixed annual concession fee, and royalty fees (percentage of revenue).
The deadline for the RFQ is November 17, and the deadline for the submission of responses by interested applicants is Thursday, November 24 at 2:00 PM Nigerian time.
All amounts and calculations in the RFQ shall be presented in the Nigerian Naira or its US Dollar equivalent, using the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Rate (NAFEX).
Interested applicants must show evidence of a minimum asset base of N50 billion or its USD equivalent.
Applications must contain a description of the company/consortium stating ownership structure, business history, management/organizational structure, energy/hydropower development, operational capabilities, and any other relevant information.
Details must also include key management staff with relevant experience working on a similar project and at least 15 years in the relevant industry.
700 megawatts of power to national grid: An additional 700 megawatts of electricity will be added to the national grid from the Zungeru Hydropower Plant as work on the project is being rounded off for inauguration in the first quarter of 2023.
The Zungeru Hydropower Plant project cost $1.2 billion to develop.
The Zungeru Dam is the first dam in the country constructed using the Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) innovative dam design technology with the main benefit being a reduction in the overall construction period and embankment footprint when compared to a typical gravity dam.
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