The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has advised the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission against the plan to build four nuclear power plants to generate 1,200 megawatts of electricity each.

The minister made known his advice during a meeting with the commission, according to a statement by his media aide, Bolaji Tunji, on Wednesday.

Adelabu received the acting Chairman of the Commission, Anthony Ekedewa, in his office in Abuja on Tuesday, where he made the remarks, according to the statement.

At the meeting, Ekedewa was said to have briefed the minister on the activities of the commission, which he said was established in 1976 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, as a military head of state.

He said, “As a renewable energy source, nuclear energy could power the entire country.”

He stressed that the commission is proposing the establishment of nuclear power plants with the capacity to generate about 1,200MW.

“We want to work and partner with you in the area of power generation. We can be a base load for the country, and we have two possible sites, Geregu in Kogi State and Idu in Akwa Ibom State. We have carried out the feasibility studies. This collaboration is part of our energy policy, but we are, however, limited by resources to undertake this project,” Ekedewa said.

Reacting, Adelabu reportedly “advised against the proposed establishment of four power plants with a capacity to generate 1,200MW each, by the commission.”

Although he said modular nuclear reactors were fine, especially with the way the government has decentralised the sector, Adelabu asked how much of the conventional sources of energy have been exploited.

“This is an area that states can benefit from. A lot of investment has gone into the development of the commission over the years, and Nigeria should start reaping from the investment,” the minister noted.

The statement disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Power has begun moves to collaborate with the Nigerian Atomic Energy Commission to increase power generation and make supply more stable, effective, and reliable.

Adelabu said the collaboration would boost power generation and stabilise the power sector as part of the reforms being undertaken in the sector.

As an advanced level of power generation, the minister said the country would benefit significantly from a nuclear power plant, especially with the technology that will come in, as it will make power generation less cumbersome.

He maintained that the participation of the commission in the power sector was long overdue and promised to work with the agency.

According to him, although the process is tedious and costly, the outcome is more beneficial to the country, adding that a nuclear power plant is an advanced stage of energy generation.

“I wish we were there already in this country, but we are not there yet. We should, however, ask ourselves how much of the conventional sources of energy we have exploited. Nuclear power plants tend to be at the lower end of concern over the years, but we have to understand that nuclear energy is the future of energy generation,” he posited.

He regretted that there had not been much done in areas of collaboration between the ministry and the commission over the years.

“We have not been having this rapport in the past, but I’m happy we are starting from somewhere now, and I believe that we will sustain it for the overall benefit of our country. This is an advanced level of energy generation, but we must also embrace it because whatever can add value to our power sector, we must embrace it.

“As we all know, leaders would naturally want projects that would materialise in their time in office, but any serious government will know that this is the future of the sector. Nuclear energy is the future of power generation. So, we must partner with you on how to improve the sector, and this meeting is the right step in the right direction. We have formally established a relationship with you, and we have so much to benefit from each other,” the minister added.

He proposed a workshop with both the ministry and the commission, with other stakeholders in the power sector in attendance to brainstorm on how the collaboration can be better sustained and beneficial.