…the power rollout covers Jigawa, Ekiti, Osun, Ebonyi, three other states
Oredola Adeola
The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) has entered into a strategic partnership with the Jigawa State Government, Nigerian Commodity Exchange (NCX), and Astound Power Limited to deliver solar power project aimed at powering agro-industrial clusters and boosting productivity in the state.
The initiative is expected to serve as a pilot for a broader multi-state public-private partnership involving REA, NCX, and other partners, targeting the development of seven agro-industrial clusters across Jigawa, Taraba, Kaduna, Kebbi, Ekiti, Osun, and Ebonyi states.
The REA, NCX and Astound Power Limited signed the MoU at the just concluded Jigawa Investment Summit (J-Invest 2026), which gathered policymakers, investors, development partners, and private sector leaders to discuss strategic pathways for unlocking sustainable economic growth across Jigawa State.
REA MD further emphasised that the project would deploy energy infrastructure to power irrigation systems.
Under the agreement, the REA will deploy the energy infrastructure to power irrigation systems and processing facilities, while the NCX will issue NCX-backed warehouse receipts to eligible farmers and aggregators for export.
Speaking during the MoU signing, the Managing Director of the REA, Dr. Abba Aliyu, who served as a lead panellist at the summit, asserted that reliable electricity remains one of the most critical foundations for attracting investment, driving industrialisation, and generating jobs across Nigeria.
He noted that the MoU reflects a shared conviction that clean energy and agriculture must be integrated to effectively strengthen food security, create sustainable employment, and unlock greater economic value for local farmers and rural host communities.
He further emphasised that energy is the vital catalyst enabling businesses to scale and communities to prosper.
Whether powering agriculture, manufacturing, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), or rural businesses, he maintained that investment inherently follows both opportunity and institutional confidence.
“One of the strongest signals any government can send is a clear commitment to creating an environment where businesses can thrive,” he said.
Advisors Reports further gathered that under the agreement, the Jigawa State Government is expected to provide land for the development, commissioning and operation of integrated Agro-Industrial Clusters.
These world-class facilities will serve as modern commodity aggregation, processing and trading hubs equipped with NCX-standard warehouses, processing plants, certified weighbridges, quality assurance laboratories and other critical infrastructure.
The landmark MoU is expected to significantly reduce post-harvest losses, strengthen agricultural value chains, improve farmers’ incomes, enhance domestic food sufficiency and boost the contribution of agriculture to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Speaking through its actions at the summit, the Nigeria Commodity Exchange reaffirmed its strategic role as the institutional backbone of Nigeria’s formal commodity trading system, connecting producers, processors, exporters, financiers and investors through a transparent, regulated and technology-driven exchange platform.
At the core of this initiative is the physical and digital transformation of the four selected deployment zones.
Rather than standard storage sheds, the pilot clusters will feature a synchronized asset class engineered to satisfy rigorous international industrial standards.
The infrastructure deployment includes regulated, NCX-certified commodity warehouses and aggregation centres configured to preserve grain and legume quality, localized processing facilities optimized for value-addition,.
The decentralized solar-powered mini-grids to be deployed by the REA is expected to insulate processors from grid instability, and structured trade infrastructure featuring certified digital commodity trading terminals, precision weighbridges, and dedicated quality assurance laboratories capable of issuing real-time crop grading and standard certifications.
