From Tongnaan Bawa, Jos
Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang has said that Plateau State under his administration is unlocking the potential of the State to fuel Nigeria’s energy independence using its rich natural resources.
Governor Mutfwang said this on Tuesday in Abuja at the opening of the inaugural Nigerian Renewable Energy Innovation Forum (NREIF) 2025 organised by the Rural Electrification Agency.
The forum is organised in line with President Bola Tinubu’s energy transition journey towards renewable energy production and consumption.
Represented by his deputy, Ngo Josephine Piyo, the Governor said that the meeting is set to ignite a new imagination for Nigeria’s industrial destination, one where our minerals become catalysts, for innovations and mountain-powered machines that would illuminate communities.
“Plateau State stands today at the epicentre of Nigeria’s green industrial transformation where geology, geography, and innovation
converge.
“For over a century, the Plateau highlands supplied the tin and columbite that helped build the modern world.
“Now, these same mineral veins, rich in tin, lithium, tantalum, niobium, barite, and silica, among others, position the State as the strategic gateway to Nigeria’s renewable-energy
future.
“In a world transitioning from fossil fuels to clean technologies, Plateau’s minerals are not just resources; they are catalysts for sustainable power, value-added manufacturing, and climate-resilient growth,” he said.
In a statement signed by the Press secretary of the Deputy Governor Martha Nyam, Mutfwang said this initiative will transform raw minerals into solar components, turbine materials, and battery systems for Nigeria’s clean-energy economy.
He added that through partnerships with agencies like the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), National Agency for Science and
Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), and private investors, Plateau would become the nucleus of a North-Central Renewable Belt, linking Nasarawa, Bauchi, and Benue in a corridor of innovation, responsible mining, and manufacturing excellence.
He explained that Plateau State stands ready, confident, credible, and committed to lead the charge to power the future of renewable energy in Nigeria.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, in an opening remark, stated that Nigeria’s energy transition journey under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is unlocking an investment opportunity of over $410 billion to position the nation as the heartbeat of Africa’s renewable energy revolution.
According to him, Nigeria is blessed with the minerals that power clean technologies, and is ready to harness her resources, unlock her capital, and become the vibrant heartbeat of Africa’s renewable energy revolution.
Earlier, the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, said that the forum opens a new chapter in Nigeria’s energy transformation pathway that highlights the role of innovative partnership in targeting a significant amount of local solar energy production capacity.
On his part, Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) Mallam Abba Aliyu, said the NREIF is a forum that connects policy and vision with research efforts as well as accelerates Nigeria’s aspirations to developing a sustainable green energy ecosystem.