FG affirms commitment as exporter of energy resources by 2026

By Uthman Salami

The Federal Government had reiterated its commitment to achieving self-sufficiency and net exporter of energy resources by 2026.

The Group General Manager, National Petroleum Investment Services (NAPIMS), Bala Wunti made this revelation while speaking at the 2022 Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition (NAICE) yesterday.

Speaking during a panel session on ‘Sustainable Energy Transition Strategy: The Role of Legislative Frameworks and Investment Programmes,’ Wunti said though the government had pledged to achieve net zero carbon emission by 2060, its priority remains reducing energy poverty in the country with its abundant hydrocarbon resources.

He said the Federal Government had zero dependence on imported energy and becoming a net exporter of secondary energy resources by 2026.

He said the hope of the government is to give access to energy to 100 per cent of the population through the gas to power initiative, which would encourage economic growth.

Speaking further, he explained that the target could only be achieved through effective legislative frameworks and investment programmes needed to maximise the opportunities in the oil and gas sector.

Wunti said there was a need to create a platform where market investment and financing fuse into one with regard to delivery of energy in a more sustainable manner.

He, however, expressed regret that industry witnessed decline in investments in recent years which had plunged the world into the global energy crisis.

Available statistics from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) shows that the world requires $11.8 trillion to meet its energy needs, he said.

On his part, Mr Austin Avuru, Chairman, AA Holdings Ltd., said Africa must possess domestic solutions to the divestment of assets by IOCs across the continent.

He said the IOCs divestments were largely responsible for Nigeria being unable to meet its OPEC quota.

He said there was a need to grow indigenous companies to fill the void created by the divestment of the IOCs.

The solution was for the companies to get access to funding from within the continent for oil and gas exploration, he said.

Avuru also called for deployment of technologies, production of more natural gas and encouragement of tree planting to achieve decarbonisation  while maximising the continent’s abundant oil and gas resources.