Economy
Power Crisis: 3 Nigerian Engineers Make Major Breakthrough
By Dipo Olowookere
Three graduates of Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State have come up with what might finally solve the age-long power supply crisis in Nigeria.
The three young men; Adeyinka Amurawaiye, Oluwaseyi Oguntade and Segun Busari have, through their company, Intellectric Systems, designed solar-based renewable energy prototypes, which consumers do not even have to own to use.
At the moment, consumers, beset by poor power supply on the one hand and the noise and pollution of generators on the other, are forced to buy tons of heavy-duty batteries and acres of solar panels with inverters for their energy needs, which do not come cheap.
Team leader of Intellectric, Adeyinka, recalled how they started what might turn out to be Nigeria’s first pay-as-you-go solar-power system.
He said, “Seyi and I had previously discussed the non-uniformity that exists in the renewable alternative power market. We agreed that the reason why people don’t buy from solar and battery systems was that there was no proper and simple enough standards on what to expect. We also asked ourselves how we could make the system cheaper for consumers.”
Even when Adeyinka, Seyi and Segun saw what they thought was a market gap, they still spent weeks contemplating their next move. Their engineering minds (Adeyinka studied Chemical Engineering, while Seyi and Segun studied Computer Engineering) were restless, but thanks to a chance programme Adeyinka watched on Bloomberg TV, they held back from jumping the gun. They decided to test the market first.
“Something struck me from the programme,” Adeyinka said. “I discovered a business strategy we could use to enter the market. We could promise to cut the consumer’s energy bill from the first month and, instead of making them buy and own batteries, panels and all the paraphernalia, rent it to them for a monthly flat rate.”
Adeyinka and his friends carried out a market survey, covering bank managers, frozen food sellers and shop owners, and the idea was well received.
They pooled their savings, but had barely finished the first prototype when they ran out of cash. They approached an investor for N5 million, who asked for proof of concept and when they told him it was still work in progress, he gave them N870,000 with which they produced a prototype that could generate 3.5kva – enough to light up an average three-bedroom flat with television and perhaps a medium-sized fridge, depending on the rating.
Intellectric Systems’ solar-power system is like the normal solar and battery system with an inverter supplying the final output of power. The difference, however, is that the entrepreneurs have embedded proprietary electrical circuits in their own system.
The standard prototype, which according to Adeyinka is able to generate 5kva of power, also requires fewer batteries and panels to operate. And under the company’s “rent a solar power” option, the consumer does not have to “own” the system to enjoy the service.
Adeyinka said, “Our intention is to focus on users who are currently spending a lot of money on power. We would like to help them save up to 30 percent of their monthly bills right from the first month. We would start with small businesses.”
As the product nears market launch, Adeyinka and his partners have spent the last two months testing the system. He said experts in the different components have also been invited to review the prototype, which will soon be subjected to further stress and field tests.
With a smile, Adeyinka said, “We’re coming into the play with a 24-hour system. It is not expected to discharge. It’s an autonomous system that uses solar power to make things sustainable.”
The billing system will also be different. It will be a flat rate on the capacity installed in the building – the higher the capacity, the higher the rate.
The currents of the journey have not been without their high-tension moments.
“People in Nigeria are used to seeing finished products, which are usually imported,” Adeyinka remarked. “When we tell potential investors that we have working prototype just about to enter the market, it doesn’t make sense to them. That is a major barrier.”
A number of failed experiments also gave the team sleepless nights. “Those were our lowest moments,” he said.
Out of the ashes of those failures, however, Intellectric Systems has grown and Adeyinka and his teammates have also grown with it.
Looking to the future, Adeyinka said: “We expect the business to contribute up to 500kva of stable electricity to the country through different private applications in the next three to five years. We’re in a major growth industry and we’re playing for the long term.”
Source: Youth Enterprise With Innovation in Nigeria Connect.
Adeyinka Amurawaiye
By Adedapo Adesanya
Energy stocks influenced the 4.76 per cent loss recorded by the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange on Friday, December 5.
The culprits were the duo of 11 Plc and Nipco Plc,with the former shedding N32.17 to end at N291.83 per share compared with the previous day’s N324.00 per share, and the latter down by N21.00 to sell at N195.00 per unit versus the previous session’s N216.00 per unit.
Consequently, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) slumped by 170.16 points to 3,401.37 points from 3,571.53 points and the market capitalisation lost N101.81 billion to close at N2.035 billion from the N2.136 trillion quoted in the preceding session.
The OTC securities exchange suffered the decline yesterday despite the share prices of three companies closing green.
Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc was up by N1.80 to close at N39.80 per share compared with Thursday’s price of N38.00 per share, Air Liquide Plc appreciated by N1.09 to N11.99 per unit from N10.90 per unit, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc grew by 78 Kobo to N56.57 per share from N55.79 per share.
During the session, the volume of transactions rose by 6,885.3 per cent to 18.2 million units from 4.3 million units, the value of transactions ballooned by 10,301.7 per cent to N389.7 million from N347.2 million, but the number of deals declined by 29.7 per cent to 26 deals from 37 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc ended the day as the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units worth N16.4 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 170.4 million units valued at N8.0 billion, and Air Liquide Plc with 507.5 million units worth N4.2 billion.
InfraCredit Plc also finished the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units transacted for N16.4 billion, followed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.2 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units worth N524.9 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira depreciated further against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, December 5, as FX demand pressure mounts.
The Nigerian currency lost N2.60 or 0.18 per cent against the greenback to close at N1,450.43/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,447.83/$1.
Equally, the domestic currency declined against the Pound Sterling in the official forex market during the session by N4.48 to trade at N1,935.45/£1, in contrast to Thursday’s closing price of N1,930.97/£1 and shrank against the Euro by 43 Kobo to end at N1,689.17/€1 versus the preceding session’s rate of N1,688.74/€1.
Similarly, the local currency performed badly against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX counter by N2 to close at N1,455/$1 versus Thursday’s N1,453/$1 but traded flat at the parallel market at N14.65/$1.
As the country gets into the festive period, pressure mounted on the local currency reflecting higher foreign payments and lower FX inflows.
However, there are expectations that the Nigerian currency will be stable, supported by interventions by to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the face of steady dollar Demand and inflows from Detty December festivities that will give the Naira a boost after it depreciated mildly last month.
Traders cited by Reuters expect that the Naira will trade within a band of N1,443-N1,450/$1 next week, buoyed by improved FX interventions by the apex bank.
As for the crypto market, it was down yesterday due to profit-taking associated with year-end trading. However, the December 1-Year Consumer Inflation Expectation by the University of Michigan fell to 4.1 per cent from 4.5 per cent previously and 4.5 per cent expected. The 5-Year Consumer Inflation Expectation fell to 3.2 per cent from 3.4 per cent previously and 3.4 per cent expected.
With the dearth of official economic data of late, these private surveys have taken on a new level of significance and the market banks of them to make decisions.
Cardano (ADA) depreciated by 5.7 per cent to $0.4142, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 5.1 per cent to $0.1394, Ethereum (ETH) dropped by 3.9 per cent to $3,039.75, Solana (SOL) declined by 3.8 per cent to $133.24, and Litecoin (LTC) fell by 3.7 per cent to $80.59.
Further, Bitcoin (BTC) went down by 2.6 per cent to sell at $89,683.72, Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 2.2 per cent to $883.59, and Ripple (XRP) shrank by 2.1 per cent to $2.04, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The oil market was up on Friday on increasing expectations the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates next week, which could boost economic growth and energy demand.
Brent futures rose by 49 cents or 0.8 per cent to $63.75 per barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures expanded by 41 cents or 0.7 per cent to $60.08 per barrel.
Investors digested a US inflation report and recalibrated expectations for the Federal Reserve to reduce rates at its December 9-10 meeting.
US consumer spending increased moderately in September after three straight months of solid gains, suggesting a loss of momentum in the economy at the end of the third quarter as a lackluster labor market and the rising cost of living curbed demand.
Traders have been pricing in an 87 per cent chance that the US central bank will lower borrowing costs by 25 basis points next week, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.
Investors also focused on news from Russia and Venezuela to determine whether oil supplies from the two sanctioned members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) will increase or decrease in the future.
The failure of US talks in Moscow to achieve any significant breakthrough over the war in Ukraine has helped to boost oil prices so far this week.
A loss of Venezuelan oil production in case of a US military intervention will materially impact global benchmark prices as the market will have to replace Venezuela’s heavy crude.
Venezuela is estimated to pump about 1.1 million barrels per day of crude oil at present, so if the US-Venezuela tension escalation into an invasion in the South American country, this volume of crude would be at risk.
Reuters reported that the Group of Seven countries and the European Union are in talks to replace a price cap on Russian oil exports with a full maritime services ban in a bid to reduce the oil revenue that helps finance Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Any deal that could lift sanctions on Russia, the world’s second-biggest crude producer after the US, could increase the amount of oil available to global markets, weakening prices.
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