BusinessDay
Oladehinde Oladipo
February 3, 2026
When Chioma Okafor moved into her new apartment in a gated estate on the outskirts of Lagos last October, she made a calculation familiar to millions of Nigerians: how many hours of electricity would she get each day?
The answer surprised her. All of them.
“For the first time in my life, I don’t plan my day around power cuts,” said the 34-year-old marketing executive, standing in her sunlit kitchen in the Meridian Park estate. “I can work from home without my laptop dying. My children can study at night. We don’t even own a generator.”
Okafor is among a growing number of middle-class Nigerians drawn to residential developments that promise something once considered a luxury: reliable electricity. Across Africa’s most populous nation, property developers are installing large-scale solar systems as a key selling point, transforming the country’s chronic power crisis into a marketing opportunity.
Nigeria’s national grid supplies electricity to only about half the population of 220 million, and even those connected endure frequent blackouts. The grid collapsed at least four times in 2024 alone, leaving homes and businesses in darkness for days.

That unreliability has made backup power a necessity. The low hum of diesel and petrol generators has become the soundtrack of Nigerian life, contributing to air pollution and adding hundreds of dollars to household expenses each year.
Now, developers see solar power as their competitive edge.
“Ten years ago, buyers asked about the neighbourhood and the finishing. Today, the first question is always about power supply,” said Tunde Adebowale, managing director of LandDeck Investment Limited, which has built solar-powered estates housing over 5,000 families in Lagos. “We’re not just selling homes anymore. We’re selling peace of mind.”
At Beechwood Estate in Lekki, a sprawling development of 1,200 homes, a centralised solar farm with battery storage provides 20 hours of electricity daily to residents. The development, completed in 2023, sold out within eight months, with units priced 15 to 20 percent above comparable non-solar estates in the area.
“People are willing to pay a premium,” said Akinwale. “When you factor in generator costs, fuel, and maintenance over five years, solar actually saves money.”

The model varies across developments. Some, like Beechwood, use large solar farms with costs embedded in service charges. Others install individual rooftop systems for each home. A few offer hybrid systems that switch between solar and grid power.
For Tunde Adebayo, who moved to the Richmond Gate estate in Abuja with his wife and two children last year, the solar promise was decisive.
“I calculated I was spending N50,000 on fuel for my generator,” he said. “The estate’s service charge includes solar power, and it’s less than what I was spending on fuel alone.”
The trend extends beyond luxury developments. In Ibadan, the Premium Trust Estate targets lower-middle-income buyers with smaller solar installations that provide eight hours of power daily, enough for essential appliances and lighting.
Industry analysts say the shift reflects both technological advances and economic necessity. Solar panel costs have dropped by more than 80 percent over the past decade, while fuel prices have surged following the government’s removal of subsidies in 2023.

“Solar has moved from aspirational to practical,” said Kunle Adeyemi, a renewable energy consultant based in Lagos. “For developers, it’s become a differentiator in a competitive market. For buyers, it’s about quality of life.”
Challenges remain. Service charge disputes have emerged in some estates where residents question the cost of maintaining solar systems. Others struggle with the initial capital outlay, even as financing options expand.
The Nigerian government, which has identified housing and power as critical deficits, has begun offering incentives for developers who incorporate renewable energy into residential projects. Data seen by BusinessDay estimates that solar-powered estates now house approximately 200,000 people across the country, up from fewer than 50,000 in 2020.
Back at Meridian Park, Okafor scrolled through her phone, showing photos she’s sent to relatives still dealing with erratic power in older neighborhoods. “My sister visited last month and couldn’t believe the lights stayed on all night,” she said, laughing. “She’s already looking at apartments here.”
As dusk settled over Lagos, lights flickered on across the estate, powered silently by the sun that had set minutes earlier. Somewhere in the distance, beyond the estate’s walls, generators coughed to life.

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