Energy Crisis: Don advocates return to coal powered electricity

A Professor of Geophysics in Enugu State University of Science and Technology, ESUT, Prof G.Z. Ugwu has advised Nigeria to return to the use of coal-fired power plants to resolve the nation's electricity shortfall.

Ugwu asked the country to ignore the narrative that coal is not a clean energy, disclosing that even more advanced countries of the world still rely on coal to harness their energy needs, noting that even the so called energy is not clean.

Prof Ugwu made the recommendation while delivering the 54th inaugural lecture 2025 of the University, on Thursday.

He stated that using coal to generate electricity will argument the energy need of the country to about 40,000 megawatts which the country requires to attain stability in energy consumption.

Ugwu said that it is wrong for Nigeria to completely ignore coal and resort to only gas energy while only 70 percent of the country population have access to electricity.

The advantage, he said, is that the current high electricity tariff in the country will reduce if coal powered plants are used to increase the power need of the Nation.

Ugwu stated that high grade coals (bituminous coals) can be used as pulverized fuel electricity generation, noting that the widespread use of coal for electricity generation has significantly contributed to socioeconomic advancement, infrastructure development and poverty reduction.

"Coal reserves are plentiful worldwide, with China and the United States leading in global reserves, although most countries possess accessible deposits. Globally, coal contributed around 34.32 percent to electricity generation in 2024, reinforcing it's role as a major energy source," Ugwu said.

He disclosed that India generates 74.6 percent of its electricity through coal; China 53.18 percent, Japan 31.87 percey, USA 14.88 percent, while Nigeria records zero percent.

"Therefore, to tackle the electricity crisis in Nigeria, the government should revitalize the coal mining industry in order to harness the large coal resources of the country by constructing coal-fired electricity generating plants across various geopolitical regions of the country where coal deposits are found to boost the electricity production," Ugwu submitted.