Relief has finally reached Tallasse and the wider Balanga Local Government Area of Gombe State, which had been without electricity for 17 years.
The Federal Government, through the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), working with the Gombe State Government and a private developer, has commissioned a 1MW solar mini-grid backed by a 2.4MWh battery energy storage system in Tallasse.
The ceremonies also saw the flag-off of construction on a 16MW network of four interconnected solar mini-grids serving Dukku, Bajoga, Kumo and Kaltungo communities.
The network is expected to bring dependable electricity to homes, farms, markets and small businesses across the state.
The Tallasse project already serves 6,028 connections and comes with electric groundnut oil processing, rice milling and flour grinding facilities, as well as electric tricycles.
Speaking at the commissioning, the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, described the projects as a practical expression of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He noted that renewable energy is being rolled out nationwide, from Adamawa to Lagos, Oyo, Plateau, Kano, Kwara and Gombe, among other states.
According to him, the commissioning opens a new chapter for the people of Tallasse after 17 years without power.
“The true significance of these investments will be measured in the daily lives they improve: the farmer who can process produce closer to home, the trader who can preserve perishable goods, the artisan who can power equipment, and the young person who can build a livelihood within the community,” he said.
The Minister, in a statement on Sunday by his Special Adviser on Media, Adeola Labzy, added that once the projects become fully operational, “they can strengthen public services, reduce dependence on costly self-generation and attract enterprise.”
He said the Ministry’s responsibility, “working with the Gombe State Government, developers and host communities, is to translate this infrastructure into dependable service, productive activity and lasting local prosperity.”
He also urged residents to guard the facilities against vandalism.
Addressing the large crowd that witnessed the ceremonies, the host Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, said the projects resulted from close collaboration between Gombe State and the Federal Government through the REA.
He explained that in an agricultural community like Balanga, which had gone 17 years without electricity, combining reliable power with rice milling, groundnut processing, flour production and electric mobility benefits the entire local economy, and not just household lighting.
The Managing Director/CEO of the REA, Abba Aliyu, said the programme is shifting its focus from counting connections and megawatts to measuring economic outcomes.
He noted that access without reliability limits impact, which is why the projects combine battery storage, intelligent monitoring, productive-use equipment and sustainable operating models. The goal, he said, is to build electricity ecosystems rather than simply install power plants.
The projects are being delivered under the Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up programme, as the Federal Government pursues several solutions at once.
These include strengthening the national grid while accelerating mini-grids, embedded generation, solar home systems and dedicated power supply for universities, markets and agricultural clusters.
Also present at the events were members of the State Executive Council, traditional rulers and leaders from the Kumo, Kaltungo and Tallasse communities, members of the National and State Assemblies, and religious leaders from across the state.
