…..Targets $2Bn Carbon Investments
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) on Tuesday unveiled plans to unlock $2 billion carbon investment in the Niger Delta region using solar power as part of the management’s wider strategy to ensure power supply to communities in the region.
The commission’s Managing Director, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, who was quoted in a statement issued by the Commission’s Public Affairs Director, Pius Ughakpoteni, hinted that the Commission was working on a plan during a Stakeholder Engagement session with partners in the region.
According to him, there is also an ongoing plan by the commission to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target on climate change within the Niger Delta region in furtherance of its efforts to make the region healthier for the people.
Ogbuku explained: “Our target is that every community in the Niger Delta region will be powered by solar, which is renewable and a cheap form of energy. In addition to this, we shall create industrial clusters powered by solar, which will help improve the agricultural value chain.
“Solar power has the dual benefit of helping people with projects and building carbon credits. We expect to recover the carbon credits we have garnered so far. Such recovered funds can be reinvested”, he added.
The Managing Director further disclosed arrangements on potential collaboration were ongoing with a US-based firm and their adherence to the National Council on Climate Change, showcasing their dedication to climate-related concerns.
He explained that solar power offered the dual benefit of supporting projects and to enable investors to earn carbon credits, adding that the commission anticipates recovering already earned carbon credits, thereby increasing the potential for environmental regeneration, particularly through mangrove restoration.
Impressed the ongoing moves by the NDDC’s management to promote environment-friendly investments in the Niger Delta region, the President of the Council on Renewable Energy, Dr. Sunny Akpoyibo, has promised support to the commission in developing projects with carbon values.
He stressed the importance of unlocking trapped values in the Commission’s projects to achieve a return on sustainable development.
Akpoyibo said that his company was committed to assisting the Commission in monetizing carbon credits and unlocking a significant $2 billion carbon investment potential in the region in the medium term.
