Katsina Government Approves Solar Power for Public Buildings, Aims for 70MW

The Katsina State Executive Council has agreed to buy and install solar power and battery storage systems at 11 public buildings.

This decision was made during the council's meeting on Wednesday.

Governor Dikko Radda chaired the meeting, as stated by his spokesperson, Ibrahim Mohammed.

After the meeting, the governor's adviser on power and energy, Hafiz Ahmed, told reporters that the equipment would support a solar program with a total capacity of 20 megawatts.

He mentioned that an assessment showed these facilities made up 93.4 percent of the state government's electricity costs.

The buildings listed in the statement include Umaru Musa Yar’Adua University, Hassan Usman Katsina Polytechnic, General Amadi Rimi Hospital, Turai Yar’Adua Maternity Hospital, the House of Assembly, and the state High Court.

It also includes three waterworks and a booster station.

Mr Ahmed expects the state to save around N7 billion from lower costs on grid electricity and diesel generators. But the statement did not say how long this estimate covers.

He added that the investment could be recovered through savings on electricity and diesel in about three and a half years.

The statement did not reveal the cost of the new equipment approval, the contractor, or when the project will be finished.

A solar program for 11 public facilities was first announced in August 2025 as part of a N19.9 billion renewable energy project.

That announcement included 20.1MW of solar capacity with battery storage at the facilities, plus an extra 10MW of solar power at Lambar Rimi.

The latest statement did not clarify if the newly approved equipment was part of the earlier contract.

Mr Ahmed also said the state has reached over 30MW of generation capacity and aims for 70MW by 2031 under an Integrated Resource Plan created with Power Africa.