Azeez: Nigeria’s Investment Climate Holds Favourable Promise
In this interview with Ugo Aliogo, the Key Account Manager, CHINT Central West Africa, Sulaiman Azeez, speaks about the company’s desire to drive innovation in the Nigeria power sector, the potential of the market and other issues. Excerpt:
Can you give an overview of CHINT Electric?
CHINT Electric Co, Limited is a subsidiary of CHINT Group Corporation, the reliable player in the LV and HV Electrical equipment, manufacturing and EPC services in power generation, transmission and distribution. CHINT Electric has supplied its products and EPC services in over 140 countries and regions, including more than 90 national power utilities, renewable energy users, oil and gas users, metallurgy users, railway users, among others.
CHINT Electric Co Limited offers power/auto transformers, distribution transformers, gas insulated switches (GIS), circuit breakers, disconnectors, insulators, earthing switches, surge arresters, voltage transformers, current transformers, to name a few. CHINT’s presence cuts across countries in North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe, including Italy, Spain, Germany, Poland, Russia, U.S.A, Ukraine, Japan, Australia, Indonesia, and a host of others.
What should Nigerians expect, following the launch of CHINT Nigeria?
The launch of CHINT Electric in Nigeria heralds a new era of technological advancement as one of our goals is to empower the country through our innovative electrical solutions. Electricity as you know is an essential component of any nation’s development process. Its use and access largely correlate to economic growth; hence its impact on the livelihood of citizens cannot be overstated. It is on this premise that CHINT Electric is looking to empower Nigeria through the provision of world-class electrical solutions. We offer our customers with high quality products and professional services by integrating electrical resources. The company has been focusing on industrial electrical manufacturing for 33 years and is known for the durability of its products.
CHINT offers EPC customers with on-demand products and services through innovative integration, and over the years, we have increasingly grown to become a reliable partner for many major international EPC contractors in the field of New Energy, Power Transmission and Distribution, among others. These are what we have in stock for Nigerians and Nigerian market.
With already well-established presence in other countries across Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific, why has CHINT chosen to enter the Nigerian market?
Nigeria is undoubtedly one of Africa’s largest economies and we are highly optimistic about the potentials the country holds. While CHINT Electric ranks as one of the leading global players in the energy sector, with presence in over 140 countries, we strongly believe Nigeria is a nation that holds bountiful potentials for economic prosperity, and technology is one of the greatest catalysts to achieve this. There can be no technological advancement without first-rate electrical solutions; hence the establishment of operations in Nigeria. Also, we are very proud that Nigeria is the first subsidiary company of CHINT Group in Central and Western Africa, and the first in the whole sub-Saharan Africa.
You are entering a market with lots of competitors, what are your strategies to take your brand to a leadership position?
As a leading player in the global energy sector, CHINT has already positioned itself as not only an innovative brand but one with the capacity to meet the demands of customers in any geographical region. With up to 13 manufacturing bases in China, Thailand, Egypt and Germany as well as 17 international subsidiaries, 32 logistics centers and 2,300 sales companies, we are capable of maintaining the leadership position our brand has grown to be known for over the years.
However, we also believe one of the most viable ways of expediting development and progress in any market is through strategic collaborations with key industry players. So, we look forward to collaborating with other leading industry players in offering innovative electrical solutions.
What are your thoughts on Nigeria’s investment climate?
With a population of over 200 million, Nigeria is a hotspot for economic activities and this makes it an attractive consumer market for traders and investors. While there have been some reforms enacted to help boost Nigeria’s position in the World Bank’s annual Ease of Doing Business rankings, the investment climate has experienced some setbacks with Foreign Direct Investment in recent years, and this can be largely attributed to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, with the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration leaning towards prioritizing diversification of the economy beyond oil and gas, with goals of building a competitive manufacturing sector and capitalizing on the nation’s existing innovative opportunities, we believe the investment climate for Nigeria holds favorable promises.
Adulteration remains a challenge eating deep into profit margins of established brands. How secured are your brands to protect it from adulterators?
At CHINT Electric, we pride ourselves in quality; hence our products have gone through a variety of extensive important tests by the appropriate organizations to ascertain and maintain the high standards we are globally known for. Consumer safety is incredibly important to us, and every product we currently manufacture is certified and meets the global standards.
Are there any future plans to collaborate with stakeholders in your industry?
Certainly. During our recent official opening ceremony, we called for collaboration with key stakeholders as we believe that with the right initiatives, support and collaboration with key players, the Nigerian energy sector would drive economic prosperity and sustainability.
Are your products certified with the Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON) and how affordable are they?
Yes, our products are certified with the Standards Organization of Nigeria and affordable. We have also received certification from other global standards organizations to ensure our products meet the best standards. Other certifications include KEMA, CESI, PCT(GOST) and TUV.
Do you have plans to set up a manufacturing plant in Nigeria in the nearest future?
Of course, yes. We have engaged in high-level discussions in the past few months with some notable stakeholders in the power industry to set up a meter factory in Nigeria. We are still open to collaborations with others who are interested and share the same view with us in developing Nigerian energy sector with our innovation and smart solutions
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is key to every organisation. Does CHINT Electric has plans to empower communities through CSR initiatives?
As a socially conscious organization, CHINT Electric is always seeking avenues and creditable platforms to uplift members of the communities we operate in. We are always inspired to promote corporate philanthropy and sustainability while seeking to encourage other entities as well as well-spirited individuals to join hands in improving our society. As part of our CSR initiatives, we announced a strategic collaboration between CHINT Electric and the University of Lagos to offer best performing students of the Electrical and Electronics department annual internship programme.
In addition to the robust and extensive training, which will be gained during the course of their internship, our student beneficiaries will also receive financial benefits. I believe this serves as a glowing testimony to CHINT Electric’s goal to not only empower Nigeria but provide credible platforms for young Nigerian talents to flourish and excel. We are committed to creating value for customers, seeking development for employees and taking responsibility for the society.
Where do you see your brand in the next five years?
We see CHINT as a brand of choice and household name in Nigeria electricity industry in a few years’ time. The more customers that identify with your brand, the more loyal they become to it and the more resistant they are to any attempt made by competitors to lure them away. We have always set our priorities and today, I can say that those priorities have helped us achieve various things. Those decisions have rewarded us with the opportunity to host captains of industry, technocrats, academicians and our valued customers.
It is almost certain that we have set up priorities for the upcoming years. We look forward to working with major stakeholders in power industry to attain new heights in the manufacturing industry whilst our remaining committed to customer satisfaction. The five years that lie ahead can be marked with milestones of progress for us in our organization.
