Minister solicits further research work on energy supply

The Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu has said Nigeria will join other countries of the world to exploit atomic materials for increased energy supply.

The Minister made this known at the validation workshop of the draft revised national energy policy and its related master plan on Monday, in Abuja.

Onu said Nigeria is watching with keen interest, ongoing researches on nuclear fusion technology for use in many countries.

He said: “The progress made in this research may appear small, but it is very significant and important in energy generation. The countries involved in this research in nuclear fusion, are planning to achieve energy sufficiency in the future”

According to him, a national energy policy and master plan is imperative to help streamline energy development in a coordinated manner adding that it is actively sought after by investors, development partners and scholars who intend to use it for the development of this sector.

“While the National Energy Policy (NEP) provided policies for long term coordinated energy development for our energy security in an environmentally sustainable manner and with active participation of the private sector, the energy master plan provides the roadmap for achieving the policy objectives through activities and programmes with timelines.”

Earlier, the Minister of state for Science, Technology and Innovation, Barrister Mohammed Abdullahi said the National Energy Policy is a policy, which articulates the way and manner the government

intends to develop its energy sector, explaining that it provides the general roadmap for the achievement of the policy objectives with timelines.

He further said with this development in the energy and its related sectors, local and international energy commissions will draft out policies to help reduce the impact of Covid-19 on renewable energy and also provide a roadmap for sustainable energy solutions in Nigeria against future domestic and global challenges.