The Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.), Mr Mele Kyari, has advocated a different approach towards attaining energy transition for the African continent.
Kyari also said the Final Investment Decision (FID) on the 25 billion dollars Nigeria Morocco Gas Pipeline (NMGP) Project would be taken in December 2024.
He made the remarks on Tuesday during a Leadership Dialogue Session at the ongoing CERAWeek Conference in Houston, U.S. tagged, “Multidimensional Energy Transition: Markets, Climate, Technology and Geopolitics.”
Kyari, in a statement by Mr Olufemi Soneye, Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Ltd., said a differentiated approach became necessary as global calls for transition to cleaner energy fuels continued to grow.
According to the GCEO, energy transition is a difficult subject for countries especially in sub-saharan Africa because geographically, the situations are different as many countries are dealing with energy availability.
“The world has seen all the challenges thrown up recently by geopolitical events. It is clear that before energy transition, countries must first attain security of energy supply in their countries.
“You cannot talk about energy security when it is not even available.
“In most sub-Saharan Africa, 70 per cent of the population don’t have access to clean cooking fuels. Therefore, you must fill the supply gap first,” Kyari stated.
He said although people talked about using the renewables to close the energy transition gap, the money for the renewables too must be found.
“If you insist on completing substitution today, then you have to deal with the problem of supply. For us today, the transition must be differentiated.
“Even if Africa decides to switch off its fossil fuels, it only accounts for just about three per cent of the entire global emissions,” the GCEO added.
He said the NNPC Ltd. was focused on building its capacity to deliver gas to the domestic market and beyond.
He said as a gas-endowed country, Nigeria must utilise its abundant gas resources to provide the alternative fuel that it required.
“We understand the arguments towards attaining energy transition, but the cheapest way to achieve that is through gas.
“We see clear opportunities that gas creates. Today we are building a number of trunklines and other gas infrastructure that will supply gas to a number of gas networks,” Kyari noted.
The GCEO said there was an ongoing engagement on the Nigeria Morocco Gas Pipeline Project, which had reached advanced stage, to create a pipeline that would pass through 13 African countries and all the way to Europe.
He stated that as the largest oil and gas company and corporate entity in Africa, the NNPC Ltd. was critical to Nigeria’s resource management and economic development.
He said the Petroleum Industry Act had reformed Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
He said it ensured that NNPC Ltd. emerged as a fully commercial entity, not only accountable to its shareholders, but also on the pathway of getting quoted on the stock exchange.
Leave a Reply