Lagos — Amid global climate change fears, developing economies, including Nigeria, are switching their energy supply from carbon fuels to alternative sources. The Energy Commission of Nigeria, in charge of the nation's energy policies, recently organised workshops in the North West on the potential of Jatropha, a tropical plant, as a source of bio-diesel. Taiwo Olawale from Dutse spoke with Professor Abubakar Sani Sambo, the Commission's Director General, on the most viable options.

Excerpt:  Alternative Energy Commission

Professor Sambo, Director General of the Commission spoke with newsmen in Jigawa State on the Commission's efforts to give Nigeria energy direction by promoting Jatropha and de-emphasising ethanol as an alternative source of energy. He also predicted economic boom if the bio-diesel from Jatropha is heavily used.

Nigeria presently has an energy crisis on her hands. The Energy Commission of Nigeria was established by law in 1979, but actually took off as a Federal Government parastatal in 1989. Its primary legal responsibility is to produce strategic plan and coordinate national policies on energy in all its ramifications.

The Commission is also mandated to advise the Federal or State Governments on energy, and to monitor performance of the sector regarding implementation of government policies on energy; while the law gives us the powers to produce periodic master plans for the balanced development of the energy sector in Nigeria.

A notable achievement is the production of the overall National Energy Policy (NEP), which was approved in April, 2003. The Commission in conjunction with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) also produced the National Renewable Energy (NRE) master plan.

In October 2007, the Commission produced the overall National Energy Master Plan (NEMP), and has been doing energy demand and supply calculations. You know no nation today in this world makes good progress without doing energy demand and supply analysis. When you calculate the demand you now make proposals on how to supply the energy to meet the demand.

In line with our mandate, we have been promoting sustainable, especially renewable energy, through pilot projects all over the federation. There are almost fifty pilot projects scattered all over the federation. And, through the centres at Sokoto and Nsukka, we have produced large numbers of renewable energy devices, solar cookers, solar water heaters, solar distillers, improved burning stoves, bio-gas digesters and stoves. Many of these pilots are really ready for mass production and commercialisation.

Jatropha, Future of Alternative Energy

Jatropha is known in Hausa as Bini-da-zugu. It is a shrub-like plant that, at full growth, may not be taller than a human being, and has great characteristics.

One, its seed, when crushed, produces oil. Secondly, the oil has similar characteristics with mineral diesel. And, tests carried out in many countries so far have shown that you can generate electricity with your generators using bio-diesel from Jatropha. Jatropha is not new. If you are from a rural community, you will know it; it is Bini-da-zugu. Jatropha produces seeds after between two and three years. Malaysians have done work on their own; they have produced improved seeds that will give you the seeds between nine months and one year. That is the type we want to propagate.

Looking at statistical data, Kano has been number one in agricultural production for so long, while there are so many oil mills. If the State Government can be sensitised to do some major facilitation in the farming communities, there will be many hectares of Jatropha. And by talking small scale industrialists in the State, in conjunction with the State Government, some of the millers can be sensitised to take in and crush them and get bio-diesel.

We want to see whether in the next few years, Kano will be the centre of bio-diesel from Jatropha. And there are some arrangements with some farming groups. They want to bring the Malaysians in the next one or two months. Jatropha does very well in semi arid areas and also in the rain forest. Before we came here, we sent people out to Ondo, Kogi, Niger, and Kano States. The seeds collected are the same.

Whether it is heavy rainfall or light rainfall, very heavy loamy soil or sandy soil, Jatropha does very well. But, the unique thing is that it grows beautifully on marginal lands. On a land in which nothing can be grown, Jatropha will grow on it.

Energy or Food Source?

The energy from Jatropha's oil will not cause an uneven competition between energy and food. It would not compete with food items. We will talk to the farming community and we are happy about eight farming associations came to this meeting and we are talking with them.

The farmers that produce millet should not stop but now they can inter-crop with Jatropha. Then in those lands that are not used, the marginal lands, they can grow Jatropha. We want to guide so that the farmers will not stop producing food items and they will continue to produce the food but now to put Jatropha so that they can make more money.

Local Processing

We are talking with Kano State oil millers association. We want to process the Jatropha bio-diesel here in Nigeria. It is the same equipment with which you extract oil from groundnut or from peanuts that you will extract Jatropha oil. So you don't need to import any new equipment neither do you need to take the seeds outside. You do everything here in Nigeria; in fact Kano alone can do everything.

Sizable Energy Returns

When you say renewable energy, you mean energy that is replenished continuously. The first one is solar; when night comes it is off in the morning it is renewed. You talk of wind, you know when the season comes, you have wind then you have local changes from week to week. When you have hydro, from one rainy season to another it is renewed.

Concerning jatropha plants, they are renewable because they are continuously being regenerated from one planting season to another. We want to make Jatropha even more renewable by planting the quick growing species that would yield between nine months to one year. The circle will be faster than that of two and a half to three years.

What do you put in solar, what do you put in wind? You can say you expend energy to build the infrastructure. But then you expend much more energy to build the conventional energy infrastructure. It is just a matter of comparison.

If you come to this Jatropha; yes, you expend energy to till the land, to plant, to harvest, to process but when you get the oil and keep it you add all these energy expenditure to get the oil, put it one side. Now, go, drill and get crude oil, process the crude oil and get mineral diesel from it, tell me which one will be more expensive.

It is not just the issue of spending energy to get renewable energy but if you don't go for renewable energy, the other conventional you go for require much more. So it is really a matter of comparison; or as they say now, comparative advantage.

Potential Energy Supplement?

Here you have a plant that will give diesel, which is used in transportation for buses, lorries, trains and even in aeroplanes. And, more importantly, you combust diesel in mighty generators and get electricity. Now, an estimate of suppressed demand was done. If people had diesel in abundance, the cost at which they are buying even at semi black market will go down.

There are places that are producing bio-diesel from jatropha like Malaysia, India and so on. China is trying to buy and some other European countries want to buy. So, the market is there. What we should do now is to grow the market. the issue of controlling the amount will come later.

When you take the seeds and crush them, the outer shell and so on and the twigs have been shown to be excellent as fertiliser. Also, when you squeeze out the oil it is not just oil you get, but there is the oil which is very liquid, almost like groundnut oil, then there is the other side that is thick almost like wax, glycerine.

This has tremendous application in chemical industry for soap making, for perfumes and even in pharmaceutical industries and so many other applications.

Between Ethanol and Jatropha

Ethanol has been the most popular renewable energy we have heard about. There was even a time in this country when we had the impression that we could derive some much economic benefit from ethanol sourced from sugarcane.

Ethanol is obtained from fermentation of food items such as maize, cassava, rice, sorghum and sugarcane. These are very major food items and the more we do that the more we tamper with the food security of the nation. That is why we are not emphasising ethanol as a bio-fuel.

We prefer Jatropha, which is not edible at all. It is a local shrub in Nigeria. Wherever you see it people use it as fencing material for the farms because the goats don't eat it, they keep away. So, Jatropha is better because it is not edible, it doesn't compete with food.

We are de-emphasising ethanol as a source of bio-fuel. It is a bio-fuel indeed and some modifications have been done to vehicles to run even 100 per cent on ethanol. But there are cars that are running on diesel; not just lorries, trucks and buses but even motor cars.

There are more of diesel fired engines for our old cars instead of ethanol. You cannot get ethanol until you go indirectly to food items. You plant cassava, maize, sorghum, rice, sugarcane first; then get the products and do the necessary fermentation.

It is like the fermentation of burukutu. Burukutu is ethanol product; it will be refined to reach its purity. But here, just plant Jatropha and squeeze it the oil is good enough as bio-diesel.

Generating Power from Nuclear Energy

The central point in the National Energy Policy of Nigeria is that the nation shall exploit all viable energy options and nuclear is one of them. The Nigerian government has decided to adopt and use nuclear energy, alongside solar, crude oil and bio-fuel.

A greater energy mix means higher energy security for this country. Nuclear energy is not synonymous with nuclear weapons. We are using nuclear science and technology for peaceful application; to boost agriculture, water supply, solid minerals exploration and also prepare us for nuclear electricity.

We have been doing this since the energy Commission was established, up to last year when government transferred the two nuclear centres to the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). But in terms of planning the energy sector we also plan for nuclear, we also do energy calculations for nuclear. There is a unit in the Commission for nuclear science and technology work as well.