Shitij Taneja, the managing director of Vertex Group, organisers of Power, Water and IOT Exhibition West Africa, in Lagos, has challenged stakeholders on the adoption of renewable energy as a cost cutting measures towards power efficiency in Nigerian and even beyond.
He said the challenges associated with power supply and distribution value chain in Nigeria has made it compelling for consumers to explore greener, more sustainable sources of energy that are off grid.
With evolving technology and innovation driven by the existence of data centres, he said the power / water / utilities eco – system is getting better as connectivity of systems is making it easier to to track usage and reduce wastages as the government rolls out new policies that will reduce carbon emission footprints.
Taneja said the programme had brought together players in different technology related spaces who are showcasing their products geared towards scaling up efficiencies in utilities and other services.
Speaking in an interview, Taneja said the combination of sectors for the exhibition offers a unique opportunity.
He said the exhibition zeroes in on the significant influence and contributions of the sectors to the region’s digital ecosystem, noting that the sector’s role in enabling digital transformation was pivotal in driving innovations in IoT alongside other cutting-edge technologies.
The Vertex Group boss said the exhibition offered another opportunity for players to harvest the gains of technology and how data centres are playing a huge role in bringing about efficiencies to assist the ecosystem.
He said over $70 million had been invested by start ups in Africa in the last one year, as more players were coming into the eco-space.
Taneja said: “We have put this programme together to explore the benefits of technology and other related value chains.”
He said there were a couple of gaps, requiring that “we switch on energy saving devices that will provide effective use of power.”
Taneja also said there was a huge gap in the water sector to be addressed by government and private sector players. In the area of energy, he said there is a huge gap to be bridged, as the gathering of such magnitude will provide solutions to achieve the best industry practices.
On the drive for smarter cities by governments, he said the exhibition provides a platform to engender solutions and the best practices to achieve the objective.
He said a new dimension was added to this year’s exhibition with the Data Center & Cloud Expo Africa, which delves deep into the evolving dynamics of digital and cloud infrastructure.
This segment, he said, highlights the centrality of telecoms in developing African data centers, focusing on advancements and green technology initiatives crucial for sustainable digital ecosystems.
The conference serves as a critical platform for telecom industry leaders and stakeholders to explore new opportunities, attract investments, and spearhead essential technological advancements.
This, he said, held particular importance for individuals within the energy, power, telecom, and data center sectors, underscoring the unique influence of telecoms in enabling connected, digital solutions.
Also speaking, an Assistant Director from the Rural Electrification Agency, Dr. Bala Tyoden said the exhibition brought together players in different sectors to collaborate and share expertise, synergise their efforts for national priorities.
Tyoden said efficiencies in water and power are key to drive growth as the government deepens collaboration with private sector players on how to measure deficits that exist in communities.
On the role of technology in delivering economic growth, he said it depends on data and how to use digitalization to fix areas that require intervention from the government and scale up its development efforts.
He said the push to get underserved communities connected to the grid source of power , would require the contributions of private sector players, by subsidizing interventions to fix access to energy.
For communities already served, the push for more private sector collaboration will improve the quality of service. He said the contributions of off grid sectors will expand access to electricity.