Before meeting PIND, I had been running a renewable energy company for more than seven years, where we install solar panels and sell other renewable energy products. I learned about PIND in 2022 through the Renewable Energy Service Providers Association of Nigeria (RESPAN). Then I attended one of PIND’s Access to Energy model sharing workshops in Port Harcourt. Although I had heard about mini-grids before the workshop, I had been skeptical about exploring them as a business opportunity as I was worried about the security risks.
PIND promised to facilitate and bridge the gap of community engagement with the people. I also networked and had one-on-one conversations with other renewable energy investors who had worked with PIND on similar projects. In June, PIND took me on an assessment tour of Adagbarasa, Warri North LGA of Delta state, to learn the community’s energy needs and viability as a mini-grid installation location. It was the first time I had gone to a community by water. With PIND facilitating the engagement, I had no issues interfacing with the people. I was particularly encouraged by their excitement towards the project. Like most coastal communities, they were off the national grid, so they saw the opportunity to access a low-cost and sustainable source of electricity. It was then I saw the actual value and impact of the mini grid.
After the assessment, I reached out to another organization that had promised to support me with some of the materials for the grid. However, they declined to help because they deemed the community too small, and the project less economically viable than initially hoped. I was discouraged because it was new terrain for me business-wise, and these people who had been in the sector didn’t think it was worth it. However, after some deliberation and considering the impact on the lives of the people, I decided to continue on my own and use the experience as a learning process. I reached out to PIND once more, expressed my concerns, and told them the areas I would need support. I also spoke about the issue of access to the community seeing that you could only reach it by water, and we would need to move heavy equipment there to install the cabin.
We also spoke about funding and management of the grid after installation and my lack of experience in the sector. PIND stepped in, and their support exceeded my expectations. Based on my proposal, PIND awarded me a grant that covered the materials needed to install the grid. Since meeting PIND, my organization’s confidence level, skills, and experience have improved. Going into the mini-grid sector has improved our capacity and given us access to an industry we would have never believed we could enter. Another value to the organization is that we have improved our business structure to accommodate this new expansion in the energy sector. Already, we have seen even more opportunities to explore.