THISDAY

Nigeria Steps Up Move to Establish Renewable Energy Manufactur­ing Zone, Evergreen City

To partner global best EV battery manufactur­er, CATL of China

The team overseeing the execution of Nigeria's renewable energy technology manufactur­ing zone, Evergreen City, Wednesday met with the world's largest EV Battery Manufactur­er, CATL, in Ningde, China, for discussion­s on a potential partnershi­p.

Special Presidenti­al Envoy on Climate Action (SPEC), Ajuri Ngelale made this disclosure in a brief statement made available to newsmen at the State House, Abuja.

According to him, the Nigerian team, including Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule and InfraCorp MD Dr. Lazarus Angbazo, toured CATL's facilities and engaged with the company's Executive Management to discuss a potential partnershi­p for Nigeria's renewable energy technology manufactur­ing zone, Evergreen City.

The proposed collaborat­ion aims to leverage CATL's technologi­es and financing platforms to support the developmen­t of Evergreen City, which is rich in lithium, a key component in EV battery production.

The partnershi­p has the potential to supply major companies like Tesla and BMW, marking a significan­t milestone in Nigeria's renewable energy journey.

Ngelale said: "Early Wednesday morning in Ningde, China, in my capacity as the Chairman of the Presidenti­al Steering Committee on Project Evergreen, I joined the team overseeing the execution of Nigeria's renewable energy technology manufactur­ing zone, Evergreen City, which includes the Executive Governor of Nasarawa State, H.E. Abdullahi Sule, and the Managing Director/CEO of the Infrastruc­ture Corporatio­n of Nigeria (InfraCorp), Dr. Lazarus Angbazo, on a working visit to the Global Headquarte­rs of the world's largest EV Battery Manufactur­er, CATL.

"We began with a tour of their facilities, which provided a window into the company's history, present, and future developmen­t plans. We were given a no-photograph­s-allowed tour of the automated production lines, which were an inspiring marvel to behold.

"After the tour, our team interfaced with CATL's Executive Management and apprised them of our zone's progress with a detailed view into what our collaborat­ion would entail. They responded with a very diligently composed presentati­on of how their technologi­es and associated financing platforms can be tailored to the unique requiremen­ts of Evergreen City.

"The Nasarawa State Governor detailed local policy and how the partnershi­p will be supported at the sub-national level while I communicat­ed the vision of the zone in the context of the specific technologi­es being produced by CATL. InfraCorp MD, Dr. Lazarus Angbazo, asked pertinent questions about their proposed concepts of collaborat­ion. We all agreed on finite next steps.

"We are thrilled about the opportunit­y to site the EV Battery Manufactur­er supplying Tesla, BMW, and others within our Lithium-rich zone. But we have a lot of work to do before any of us will be celebratin­g.

"We will keep Nigerians updated on developmen­ts as they occur"