“Traditional utilities play a key role to interconnect with renewable energy solutions to reach more customers”

At the recent Enlit Africa in Cape Town, VUKA Group’s Green Economy Portfolio met up for an exclusive interview with Babatunde Osadare, Chief Legal Officer, Ikeja Electric in Nigeria and speaker at the conference.

Interview Summary:

Babatunde Osadare, Chief Legal Officer of Ikeja Electric, highlights Nigeria’s progress in modernising utilities and embracing renewable energy. He explains how smart metering, now covering nearly 88% of Ikeja Electric’s customers, underpins transparency, energy management and reduced losses. He notes the surge in solar imports and the role of traditional utilities in interconnecting with renewables to expand access. Osadare praises South Africa’s prosumer revolution and outlined Nigeria’s forthcoming net billing regulation. His message stresses balancing decentralisation with grid investment, regional cooperation, and large‑scale projects to drive industrialisation and lift Africa out of energy poverty.

Thank you for joining us, please tell us more about your organisation.

I work for Ikeja Electric as the Chief Legal and Regulatory Officer. Ikeja Electric is one of the distribution companies in Nigeria serving parts of Lagos State, including the country’s largest city.

We serve over a million electricity customers and have achieved high metering density. Since privatisation, we have worked to transform how a modern utility should operate—investing in the network, strengthening infrastructure, and adopting smart technologies such as smart metering.

Today, those early investments are beginning to bear fruit. A critical step was investing in technology to account for energy from the grid down to the last‑mile infrastructure that connects customers.

Much work is still underway to prepare for the future and to define what it means to be a modern utility.

Let’s talk about the enthusiasm and excitement that Nigeria has developed for renewable energy.

I like the word “excitement” because it reflects the reality. The energy deficit has been a major challenge not only in Nigeria but across Africa. With the boom in renewable energy, advances in technology, and falling costs, more people are embracing alternatives.

Mission 300 aims to electrify millions more Africans in the coming years, supported by multilateral funding. This explains why countries are pivoting to alternative energy—whether driven nationally or by private consumers in their homes and businesses.

Just last year, Nigeria imported over 400 billion naira worth of solar panels, a massive signal of what is happening. At the national level, the Rural Electrification Agency has used available funding to reach customers who previously had no access.

Policy support is accelerating expansion, and in the mini‑grid space, traditional utilities have a key role to play by interconnecting with renewable solutions to reach more customers, leveraging the grid as they continue to invest.

You mentioned that your customer base was heavily metered. How important is data in this energy transition on the continent?

At Ikeja Electric, metering density is now close to 87–88%, and we aim to close the gap soon. Significant investment has gone into smart meters, which form the foundation for energy accounting, revenue assurance, and digitalisation.

This builds the ecosystem to interconnect with renewable systems, supported by regulation and policy. Customers are empowered to measure and pay accurately, fostering trust and reducing wastage.

High metering density has improved revenue assurance and revealed loss points. But metering alone is not enough—you need end‑to‑end solutions, network clean‑up, and customer empowerment with smart devices.

We are piloting an “intelligent data box,” an end‑to‑end metering ecosystem. Early results show losses reduced from 40% to 10% on some feeders. We see this as the future of utility operations and plan to scale it up from 2026.

You’re at Enlit Africa, a pan‑African conference for utilities and independent power producers. What sessions are you attending and what is your message?

I’m excited to join Enlit Africa again. There’s a positive atmosphere among utilities from South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia. We share similar challenges and solutions, and it’s energising to exchange experiences.

I will join a session on the prosumer revolution, discussing South Africa’s experience and Nigeria’s progress. Prosumers—private customers who invest in renewables and export excess to the grid—are reshaping the sector. In South Africa, about 7,000 MW has been installed by prosumers, helping to address load shedding.

Nigeria is moving in this direction with a reviewed net billing regulation, soon to be finalised. This will incentivise private investment in renewables and grid export.

Utilities must be ready to manage this revolution. Regulation and policy are key to balancing bi‑directional energy flows, sustaining grid investment, and incentivising renewables without undermining existing infrastructure. The grid remains the backbone of every energy system.

My broader message is about promoting energy access and advancing the transition to renewables in Africa. Progress is evident—more homes are connected, capacity is growing, and energy poverty is being reduced. But industrialisation must not be forgotten. Large‑scale electricity projects are essential for economic empowerment.

To achieve this, regional cooperation and infrastructure integration are vital. National energy policies must evolve into regional and continental frameworks. Africa must take its energy future into its own hands. That is my key message at this year’s conference.