Our target is to provide enabling environment for enterprise to thrive but… ― FG

THE Federal Government, on Thursday, said its major target is to provide the enabling environment for enterprise to thrive and ensure the wellbeing of its citizenry, saying this might not be possible without adequate electricity.

Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Honourable Abubakar Bwari, disclosed this in Abuja at the Nigerian Mining and Geoscience Society (NMGS) and Nigerian Geological Survey Agency (NGSA) discourse series on “Geothermal Energy with the theme: An untapped potential.”

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He said as the government continues to pursue vigorously, traditional means of providing power, Nigerians must look at the untapped potential of geothermal energy, as well as similar cutting-edge scientific resources that could pave way for business enterprises to thrive.

Honourable Bwari stated that inadequate electricity in many enterprises was still a major issue that negatively affected the provision for an enabling environment and wellbeing of citizens, adding that sourcing for and characterizing the coal resources in Nigeria have become the basis for policy direction.

According to him, “some countries, even our sister African countries already have a head start in terms of research on geothermal energy. Information available shows that Kenya, for instance, has achieved about 1000mw of energy from geothermal energy. Nigeria can, therefore, take a cue from this and develop a robust approach to acquiring this new energy resource.

“Experts advise that we approach this through modular basis by taking care of regional and area-specific demands, particularly rural areas, rather than making each geothermal station feed the entire station. There is no doubt that such a development will add impetus to the federal government’s Economic Recovery Growth Plan (2017-2020) since access to power is a key part of the objectives.

“This discourse series on geothermal energy will further excite the interest of Nigerians so they must be prepared for the scrutiny of Nigerians regarding the processes and products of this programme,” he added.

Earlier, Director-General, Nigeria Geological Survey Agency (NGSA), Mr. Alex Nwegbu, said geothermal energy could be the game changer in the quest to providing teeming rural dwellers with a renewable source of power, which would kick-start rural economies and create the much-needed jobs, both of which are key deliverables in the nation’s Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP).

“The upscaled geo-data on carbonates will facilitate the necessary investment decisions for an upsurge in the establishment of more cement factories nationwide as well as provide raw material feedstock for our pharmaceutical paint, fertilizer and ceramic industries,” he said.