South Korea has offered to help Nigeria develop nuclear energy options to address the shortage of power generation and supply in the country.
The Ambassador of South Korea to Nigeria, Kim Young Choe, disclosed this at an interactive session with the Senate Committee on Power chaired by Senator Gabriel Suswam.
According to him, the nuclear energy options currently being used in the United Arab Emirate are based on South Korea’s model and powered by South Korean companies.
The committee had called for the meeting to clarify certain issues regarding the stand-alone mini-grid project to be funded by the Korean Government and gifted to Nigeria.
The mini solar grid project is valued at $12.4m.
According to Choe, the project is a grant from his country to Nigeria and not a loan.
The envoy also confirmed that all the four mini-grids would be sited in Abuja, with the works and maintenance of the project to be handled by South Korean contractors.
While the committee welcomed the gift, the lawmakers expressed a few reservations about the decision of the South Korean Government to have all the grids sited in Abuja.
Suswam urged the South Korean Government to consider a wider spread that would leave Abuja with one grid and at least two in each of the six geopolitical zones.
He said the $12.4m being proposed for four grids in Abuja would be enough to build 12 grids, even though with smaller capacity but with greater desired impact across the country.
In his presentation, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Rural Electrification Agency, Salihijo Ahmad, stressed the need for the grids to spread across the country.
He also expressed concerns about the sustainability of the project and the possibility of having Nigerian companies work on it.
Choe, in his response, said although the demand by the committee was a difficult one, he would forward the request to his government in Seoul.
