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
Despite signs that Nigeria’s headline inflation is easing, rising food prices continue to threaten the country’s inflation outlook, the chief executive of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Mr Muda Yusuf, has warned.
He noted that structural inflationary pressures in the real economy remain pronounced despite improving macroeconomic stability.
In a policy brief released following the inflation report, he noted that headline inflation eased marginally, while month-on-month change moderated from 1.75 per cent to 1.66 per cent, indicating that headline inflation has largely plateaued.
According to him, the dominant concern in the latest inflation report is the renewed acceleration in food inflation.
This growth, he said, suggested that food prices have resumed an upward trajectory after a brief period of moderation.
Warning that a renewed increase in food inflation has significant economic and social implications, he stressed that food inflation remained the biggest driver of Nigeria’s cost-of-living crisis, stressing that rising food prices continue to erode household purchasing power, worsen poverty and food insecurity while weakening the inclusiveness of the current reform programme.
He maintained that sustained moderation in food prices is critical to improving citizens’ welfare and strengthening public confidence in the ongoing economic reforms.
Acknowledging the easing of core inflation as encouraging, he drew attention to the persistence of urban inflation.
At 16.08 per cent, urban inflation exceeded the national headline inflation rate of 15.91 per cent, while month-on-month urban inflation increased from 1.99 per cent to 2.13 per cent.
According to Mr Yusuf, the figures indicated that inflationary pressures remained particularly intense across urban centres.
He attributed the rising urban inflation partly to increasing population displacement from rural communities affected by insecurity, expressing worry that as more households migrate to urban areas, demand for housing, transportation, utilities and other essential services would increase, adding to inflationary pressures and creating additional urbanisation challenges.
Addressing insecurity in farming communities, he said, was important not only for protecting lives and property and boosting agricultural output but also for easing cost pressures in urban centres, adding that the June CPI data reinforced the view that Nigeria’s inflation challenge is predominantly structural rather than monetary.
On the monetary policy outlook, he said the data do not justify further monetary tightening, arguing that headline inflation has largely stabilised.
The CPPE chief expected the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to retain the current monetary policy rate at its next meeting, adding that the priority is for monetary and fiscal authorities to work together to accelerate structural reforms to expand food supply, improve logistics, reduce energy and production costs, lower debt service costs, as well as strengthen domestic value chains.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Additional shares of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The new equities were added to the company’s existing stocks on Customs Street on Thursday, July 16, 2026, a notice from the bourse confirmed.
Business Post reports the total new ordinary shares of Sterling Holdings listed yesterday were 13,812,239,000 units.
They were from the offer for subscription of 12,581,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each sold for N7.00 per share, which was oversubscribed by investors.
The financial institution brought the new shares to the stock exchange to increase its total issued and fully paid-up shares to 65,929,251,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 52,117,012,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
“Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 13,812,239,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc were on Thursday, July 16, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares listed on NGX arose from the company’s offer for subscription of 12,581,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N7.00 per share.
“With the listing of the additional shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc have now increased from 52,117,012,414 to 65,929,251,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each,” the notice read.
By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu has signed a Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, establishing a new framework to coordinate the regulation of virtual assets across government agencies as Nigeria seeks to curb fraud while supporting innovation in the digital economy.
The Executive Order, which takes immediate effect, creates a Virtual Asset Council chaired by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to harmonise oversight of cryptocurrencies, tokenised assets, stablecoins, and other digital assets without creating a new regulator.
As part of the new framework, the CBN will establish a regulatory sandbox that will allow eligible firms to test virtual asset products, blockchain solutions, and related services under regulatory supervision before they are introduced to the wider market.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga.
According to the presidency, the Executive Order responds to the growing complexity of virtual assets, which increasingly cut across the traditional boundaries of currencies, securities, commodities, and payment systems.
The fragmented regulatory environment has left gaps that have exposed Nigeria to money laundering, terrorism financing, cybersecurity and data privacy risks, fraud, and revenue losses.
The government said some unregistered operators have exploited these regulatory gaps to defraud unsuspecting Nigerians, resulting in significant financial losses.
“The Order is designed to close these gaps through supervisory coordination, without introducing new layers of regulation or displacing the mandates of existing agencies,” the statement read.
Under the new framework, the Virtual Asset Council will be chaired by the CBN, with the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) serving as vice chairs. Other members include the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
The Council will provide policy direction, improve cooperation among participating agencies, and work with the Attorney General of the Federation to develop a harmonised legal and institutional framework for the sector.
The Executive Order also establishes a Virtual Asset Office, which will serve as the Council’s operational arm. The office will be domiciled at the CBN and will coordinate information sharing, applications, and reporting among the participating agencies through a shared supervisory technology platform.
The presidency stressed that the Executive Order does not create a new regulator or transfer statutory powers from existing agencies, clarifying that instead, each institution will continue to exercise its existing mandate while working within a coordinated framework.
Under the arrangement, registration of virtual asset businesses will depend on the nature of the service being offered.
Activities classified as securities will continue to be regulated by the SEC, while payment, settlement, custody, and other services involving non-security virtual assets will fall under the CBN.
Where there is uncertainty over regulatory jurisdiction, the Virtual Asset Council will determine the appropriate supervising agency.
“The sandbox will provide a controlled environment in which eligible operators can test and operate virtual asset products, services, and blockchain-based solutions under close supervision, enabling the participating agencies to assess the implications for monetary sovereignty, financial stability, market integrity, consumer protection, financial inclusion, and revenue administration before products reach the wider market,” the statement added.
According to the presidency, the sandbox will enable regulators to evaluate the implications of emerging products for financial stability, monetary sovereignty, consumer protection, financial inclusion, market integrity, and revenue administration.
The central bank is expected to announce further details of the sandbox.
