By Dr Omotayo Dairo
Solar/Biomass Hybrid Energy Solutions – The Quintas Approach
Years of research and product development led Quintas Renewable Energy Solutions Ltd to provide renewable energy services in form of solar/biomass hybrid energy solutions and integrated circular economy services in agriculture to tap the huge potentials in village ecosystems in Nigeria. We deploy developments in green agriculture, agro-industrial processing by leveraging on current and ongoing off grid electricity deployments in Nigeria. In total off grid energy locations, we generate heat and electricity required for our operations.
Background Information
The “Village” in Nigeria harbours 55% of the population, and over 85% of agro-business takes place there. Agriculture remains the bedrock of sustainable economic development in Nigeria, nay Africa. Africa’s land mass is more than that of the USA, Europe, China and India put together, has 60% of global uncultivated arable land, huge manpower resources for agricultural practice, mean age population of under 19-years, many rivers, brooks and lakes through which dams, aquaculture and irrigation could be practiced.
Agricultural practice in Nigeria is mostly small holding farming, in which an average farmer engages in multi-crop farm cultivation on less than five hectares farmland. Farmers are dependent of rainfall to grow crops, rely on sunshine for drying of agro-products and agro-processing is manual, resulting into sub-standard primary, intermediate or final products. Feeder road networks to transport agricultural products from the villages are poor, health care facilities are difficult to reach and infrastructure like potable water and electricity are mostly not available.
Agriculture generates over 26% of Nigeria’s GDP ($126.4b) in 2020, provides food for over 95% of the population, contributes major raw material to local industries and a significant source in her none Oil export portfolio. Over 40% of agricultural produce with a monetary value of over $9.2bn are lost annually to postharvest wastage (FIIRO, 2014).
Empirical studies by Quintas show that there are huge resource potentials (human, animal, natural, mineral etc) in the village ecosystem that could be tapped for economic development and wealth creation for the nation.
Quintas observed that the major limitations against tapping the potentials in the village ecosystem in Nigeria are the lack of required energy and effective agriculture development/processing tools and equipment.
Advancement in renewable energy and deployment of off grid energy to rural communities in Nigeria is addressing some of the energy challenge gap. Quintas established a “Proof of Concept Centre” in Ondo State to demonstrate a practical way to sustainably tap the potentials in the village ecosystem.
Quintas Efforts/Strategy: Proof of Concept site at Ita-Olorun, in Ondo State
Quintas has developed a “Proof of Concept Site to work toward harnessing the potentials of the village ecosystem.
Quintas will leverage on the ongoing off grid electricity deployment in the nation to provide energy for a successful and sustainable harnessing of the resources at the village ecosystem, and where no clean off grid energy exist, we shall provide, through deployment of our solar/biomass hybrid energy generation processes and deploy “free energy” water pumps for irrigation and other uses, using the ram and “free energy auto water pump” technologies.
Quintas also fabricates agro-processing and agro-development enhancing tools.
Our business models are:
a. Manufacturing and selling our energy generation and agro-processing products to farmers/processors that could afford them.
b. Establish Village Ecosystem Development Centers to encourage green agriculture, agro-industrial processing, provide sustainable energy and infrastructure for agro-industrial processing. These centers are easy to replicate and we generate income though final product sharing with farmers and processors that are our partners.
The Village Ecosystem Development Centers promote:
i. Irrigation for all year farming
ii. Livestock, Aquaculture and Animal husbandry
iii. Food storage and Agro-Industrial processing to manage postharvest wastage and
iv. Marketing of farm produce to bigger markets
We had planned to establish two ecosystem development centers within the year and twelve in five years.
Each development center will be independent and self-accounting.
We would require about investment funds to setup a village economic development center that will be run as an independent business outfit with a projected annual return on investment not less than 40% each year.
Track records of Quintas to promote this vision
i. 2011 Technology Pioneer of the World Economic Forum
ii. Winner, 2012 UNDP/BoI Energy Challenge Competition
iii. Winner, 2014 USADF/Power Africa Energy Challenge Competition
iv. Winner, 2016 Siemens Empowerment Network Innovation Challenge
v. Winner, 2017 Enpact of Germany Startup Global Challenge
vi. Resource Fellow on Renewable Energy & Circular Economy, NESG
vii. Designed and fabricated a prototype Steam Power Plant yet to be commercialized
viii. Two Nigerian Patents on Biomass Energy Generation technological innovations
ix. Successful and functional Proof of Concept projects are on ground in Ondo State, Nigeria
Dr Omotayo Dairo is the founder/Chief executive of Quintas Renewable Energy Solutions Ltd. A medical doctor turned energy professional, he has grown Quintas energies to become one of the biggest biomass / bioenergy companies in Nigeria with major expertise in inventing and fabricating machines for productive use.
