Abuja, NIGERIA – President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Mr. Rilwan Lanre Babalola as the Special Adviser to the President on Power. Announced on Thursday, Babalola will also chair the newly established Presidential Taskforce on Power Sector Reset and Restoration, a body designed to restore commercial viability to the energy market.
Mr. Babalola is a veteran of the power sector, having served as the Minister for Power between 2008 and 2010. During his earlier career at the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), he played a pivotal role in the initial restructuring of the defunct NEPA and the formation of successor companies.
Okay News reports that his appointment is accompanied by a strategic redesignation of the Office of the Special Adviser (Energy), which will now focus exclusively on Oil & Gas to streamline governance.
The Presidential Taskforce has been handed a rigorous mandate to implement a “Performance Before Expansion” framework. This policy prioritizes the reduction of technical, commercial, and collection losses—currently estimated to be among the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa—before investing in further capacity. The Taskforce is also expected to deliver a 90-day implementation blueprint aimed at grid discipline, tariff integrity, and sector liquidity.
A key feature of the new strategy is the development of “Electricity Growth Zones.” These zones are intended to promote the productive use of power in industrial clusters, shifting the sector’s focus from passive utility to an economic driver. This follows President Tinubu’s recent approval of a ₦3.3 trillion (approx. $2.4 billion) payment plan to settle legacy debts in the sector, a move intended to restore investor confidence and ensure gas suppliers continue to fuel thermal plants.
The appointment of Babalola, an Energy Economics PhD holder from the University of Surrey, underscores a shift toward technocratic leadership in the Renewed Hope Agenda. As Nigeria prepares for the 2027 election cycle, the success of this Taskforce in delivering measurable improvements in home and business electricity supply will likely become a central pillar of the administration’s economic legacy.
