Improving Nigeria’s Industrial Energy Performance and Resource Efficient Cleaner Production Through Programmatic Approaches and Promotion of Innovation in Clean Technology Solutions

1. CONTEXT / BACKGROUND

The industrial sector, particularly the manufacturing subsector in members’ states has to a large extent failed to adopt energy-efficient and cleaner production techniques, having not strictly enough put into use national and international waste management standards or energy efficiency programs despite several initiatives launched by the government, international donors and other partners within the country. Several barriers still contribute to the limited uptake of cleaner production and energy efficiency measures by small, medium, and large manufacturing industries in memnber states These barriers include:

• Informational barriers: Informational barriers contribute significantly to the widespread failure to recognize the opportunities for energy efficiency and cleaner production. There is a lack of updated information or platforms where available options, internationally recognized best practices, and benchmarks can be accessed by operators in the industrial subsectors. Although some member statess and even international donor partners, have carried out some awareness.
  Activities to disseminate information on IEE and Resource Efficiency and Cleaner Production, best industrial/production practices, a rapid assessment of some manufacturing industries showed that the level of applying the information into their management systems/structures seems to be very low.
• Government initiatives focusing on energy management and cleaner production in industries are at the nascent stage and are cited more on the policy dissemination level than in terms of actual groundwork. Industrial enterprise top management and decision-makers are not aware of the opportunities that energy efficiency and cleaner production can bring in terms of reduced production costs, improved competitiveness, and reduced environmental pollution from production activities.
• Technical barriers: The absence of technical expertise constitutes a major barrier to the improvement of industrial energy efficiency, resource efficiency, and cleaner production in most industrial and commercial facilities in the country. The ability to identify technological shortages and recommend relevant ones for various industries to promote industrial energy efficiency and cleaner production is lacking.
• Administrative and Human Resource barriers: The high turnover of plant personnel and regulatory agencies personnel assigned to the operation of industrial systems and regulatory functions leads to loss of expertise, consistency, and eventual ineffective implementation of energy efficiency and resource efficiency and cleaner production initiatives.
• Market barriers: Most manufacturing industries in the members’ states have a budgetary disconnect between capital projects and operating expenses (energy and maintenance). Life cycle assessments of purchases are rarely considered in industrial energy efficiency and cleaner production projects, with low investment costs taking priority in the decision-making process when changing equipment. In cases where consulting technical expertise for industrial energy efficiency, resource efficiency and cleaner production are available in the country, it tends to be limited to technology and not to processes and systems.
• Financial barriers: The financial barriers to investment in industrial energy efficiency and cleaner production projects are closely related to the lack of information on available financial mechanisms and incentives, and how to access them. At the financial institution and bank levels, there are three main issues: (i) lack of understanding of the particular needs of industrial energy efficiency and cleaner production projects and how to properly evaluate them; (ii) disconnect between the available financing products and the individual particulars of energy efficiency and cleaner production projects, in particular, strict demands for collateral that many SMEs are unable to fulfill; and (iii) perspective that industrial waste reduction and optimization projects are high risks and thus, collateral is a requirement to mitigate this perceived risk.
• Policy barriers: Many policies and regulatory measures are being implemented by some members’ states to promote cleaner industrial production and energy conservation in the country. These initiatives have resulted, however, in very few achievements within the industrial sector due to a lack of targets for the improvement of waste management, low carbon emission production, and energy efficiency in small, medium, and large manufacturing industries. Hence, there is an inherent weakness of the existing instruments intended to educate market players (industries, consultants, equipment suppliers, and banks) on the promotion of industrial energy efficiency and cleaner production, as well as inadequate financial incentives and mechanisms.

2. MAIN ACTIVITIES & IMPLEMENTATION APPROACH

Main interventions include following:

• Strengthening of National Industrial and Environmental Policies and Regulatory Frameworks for IEE and Environmental Management Standards : Assisting the members’ states in the development of policy and regulations that will better foster increased investment in IEE (under the EnMS and ESO methodologies), RECP, and strengthening of national standards bodies/institutions regarding accreditation and certification capacity for the ISO 50001 and ISO 14000 series.
• Modular IEE EnMS/ESO and RECP Industrial Enterprise and Engineering
• Consultancy Base Training and Capacity Building Programme : Assisting industries in developing IEE and RECP technical capacity through the implementation of UNIDO’s expert training programs on the methodologies.
• The training will target industrial enterprise engineering personnel and management, as well as the independent engineering and environmental consultancy base.
• Development of professional IEE and RECP curriculum in collaboration with academic institutions

3. ACHIEVED OUTPUTS (If the project is ongoing)

As of the end of November 2023, more than 1050 professionals have been trained in industrial energy efficiency, esource-efficient and Cleaner Production, finance and Investment. They included Industries’ Chief Executives Officers, national Energy Efficiency Experts, Policy Regulators, Financial Managers, university professors, industries’ technical staff and management personnel.

Small, medium, and large-scale industrial enterprises within the industrialized zones of the countries are the targeted beneficiaries. The industrial sub-sectors that they engage in include i) building materials (brick, cement, wood, and other input materials); (ii) iron and steel; (iii) non-ferrous metals; (iv) food processing; (v) agriculture; (vi) glass; (vii) breweries and distilleries; and (viii) manufacturing sub-sectors including automotive vehicle production.