Nigeria, Japan in Talks Over $238m Loan to Expand Power Grid

The Federal Government is in discussions with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) over a $238 million loan facility aimed at expanding Nigeria’s national electricity grid, with a strong focus on strengthening the transmission segment of the power value chain.

The talks were part of deliberations at the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9) in Yokohama, Japan, where President Bola Tinubu led Nigeria’s delegation alongside the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu and other senior officials.

During the summit, Nigerian representatives engaged top Japanese energy stakeholders, including Toshiba, Hitachi, Japan’s Transmission & Distribution Corporation, and Energy Exchange corporations, with discussions centred on boosting transmission infrastructure, improving operational efficiency and reducing system losses.

The proposed JICA loan builds on a recent Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval of ₦19 billion in counterpart funding. If finalised, the facility will finance the construction of 102.95 km of new 330kV double-circuit (DC) lines, 104.59 km of new 132kV DC lines, four 330/132/33kV substations, two 132/33kV substations, two 330kV line bay extensions, two 132kV line bay extensions and one new 132kV substation.

In parallel, Adelabu announced progress on a $190 million JICA-backed renewable energy loan facility to scale distributed energy solutions across underserved communities. This complements the recently launched $750 million World Bank–funded Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) programme under the Mission 300 Compact, which aims to deliver reliable clean electricity to more than 17 million Nigerians.

Additionally, three substations financed through a $32 million JICA grant are nearing commissioning in Apo (FCT), Keffi (Nasarawa State), and Apapa (Lagos State). These projects are expected to boost power supply to households, businesses, and industrial clusters, including critical hubs such as Lagos Port and adjoining economic zones.

To address technical capacity gaps, the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN), in partnership with JICA, has also commissioned state-of-the-art training equipment in Abuja to upskill distribution engineers, reduce network losses, and deepen local expertise for long-term sustainability.

Speaking during a TICAD panel session, “HICKARE Africa: Harnessing Innovation, Co-creation, and Knowledge for Accessible and Resilient Energy for Africa,” Adelabu highlighted Nigeria’s stark energy realities. He noted that only about 60 percent of the nation’s 200 million people have access to electricity, much of it unreliable. The government, he said, is working to expand grid access in urban areas while accelerating off-grid solutions, including solar mini-grids and standalone systems, for rural and peri-urban communities.

While acknowledging persistent challenges such as limited access to affordable capital, high costs for rural households and underutilisation of productive-use equipment, Adelabu reaffirmed the government’s commitment to overcoming them through supportive policies, private-sector partnerships and local manufacturing of renewable energy components.

He expressed appreciation to JICA and the Government of Japan for their consistent support to Nigeria’s power sector, describing the agency as a reliable partner in driving the country’s energy transition.

President Tinubu, in his remarks, stressed that Nigeria’s participation at TICAD 9 went beyond trade exhibitions, focusing instead on forging strategic partnerships that would deliver measurable results. “We are deliberately shifting from planning to implementation, from agreements to delivery and from promises to tangible outcomes” Tinubu declared.