Director General of the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria, Mr. Ahmed Nagode, has said that the institute has made significant investments in the renewable energy sector by providing comprehensive training programmes to develop a skilled workforce for the power industry.
Nagode said this at the alumni seminar with the theme ‘Continuous Professional Development: The Key to Unlocking Power Sector Potential’ held in Lagos recently.
The Director General explained that the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN) recognized the importance of diversifying the sources of electricity generation beyond the national grid and thus made the decision to establish a comprehensive training approach for renewable energy, including solar energy and other forms of renewable energy.
He further clarified that NAPTIN’s primary focus in the renewable energy sector is on solar photovoltaic (PV) under the Nigeria Energy Support Programme, which is being managed by GIZ under a bilateral agreement between Nigeria and Germany.
He said NAPTIN had come up with four critical areas in renewable energy development for the country. These areas included: Solar PV installation and maintenance; solar PV supervision, which he said was an advanced stage of solar PV installation and maintenance; mini grid design aimed at putting up off grid solar systems; and energy efficiency to be able to manage the quantum of energy available.
The NAPTIN boss added that all the above highlighted aspects of renewable energy development were targeted at attaining energy sufficiency for the country in a bid to build the skill of young Nigerians to be able to install and maintain solar PV among other areas of renewable.
“As we gather today to celebrate our collective achievements, we are also mindful of the power of this community of alumni to unlock power sector potential. As an integral part of our institute’s legacy, our alumni’s accomplishments have made us immensely proud. This event is an opportunity that is key to harnessing our collective strengths as NAPTIN alumni. Indeed, our goal here is to chart a new course for the future of NAPTIN alumni towards making contributions to the development of the Nigerian Power sector.
“We have chosen the theme of ‘Continuous Professional Development: The Key to Unlocking Power Sector Potentials’ for this event as it is a topic that is close to our hearts. As you all know, the power sector is one of the most critical sectors in our country, and it is one that should constantly evolve to cater for the demands of national development. Our research has shown that by unlocking the potentials of the sector through CPD we can reliably have a pool of dedicated professionals who will lead the sector in keeping up with the changing market needs,’ the Nagode said.
Also speaking, the Deputy Director, Training Programme, Abdulahi Sambo, said the activities of NAPTIN had gone beyond Nigeria as some of its facilitators are training others outside the country.
Sambo said Nigeria’s power sector was bedevilled by a lot of challenges which prevented it from reaching commercial viability, listing some of the challenges to include: low investment, decaying infrastructure, huge debt, regulatory uncertainty, insufficient transmission and distribution facilities, gas supply and poor management.
According to him, the sector, however, had huge potential as a result of the large deposit of oil and gas to grow the sector, despite the challenges.
Responding, some of the alumni who participated in the event lauded the efforts of NAPTIN, saying the knowledge gained during their training with the institute had helped them make exploits while breaking new grounds in their various work stations.
They implored NAPTIN not to rest on its oars but strive to ensure that it has a robust relationship with the various training institutions, universities, polytechnics to develop curriculum that will meet the day-to-day need of the power sector.