Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has said it is unacceptable that Nigerians spend 5 billion dollars on generators annually.

To this end, Dogara said the house was reviewing some of Nigeria’s energy laws in order to provide an appropriate legal framework to facilitate the exploitation of renewable energy to the benefit the Nigerian economy.

Dogara spoke while declaring open a public hearing on three bills that seek to enhance the operations of Nigeria’s power sector.

“Power is arguably the single most important driver of the national economy. Indeed, it is difficult if not impossible to imagine modern life without power. Our industries and factories need electricity to run; and so do our offices, homes and businesses.

“It is estimated that Nigerians spend about $5bn yearly to fuel their generators. This is an unacceptable situation and the House of Representatives stands ready to support the executive arm of government to put a stop to this state of affairs.

“Renewable energy is a source of clean energy which is environmentally friendly and is crucial to the economy of the future. We can only be self-sufficient in the energy field when we combine all of our energy resources such as wind, solar, hydro, biomass, bio-fuel, landfill, sewage gas, solid waste, geothermal energy, ocean energy, etc. “Renewable energy sources are natural and often replenish themselves. Nigeria needs to invest more in renewable energy as fossil fuel is a diminishing asset.

“An appropriate legal framework to exploit renewable energy which is nature’s gift to mankind is not adequate in Nigeria. This makes it difficult to organise the sector in a commercially viable matter. Herein lies the merit and strength of this bill under consideration,” he said.