• Stakeholders say $3 trillion needed for electricity
African countries pushing to harness estimated 625.6 trillion standard cubic feet of natural gas, amid dwindling fossil fuels investment, will need about $245 billion to construct pipelines, gas terminals and gas processing plants, stakeholders said yesterday.
While Nigeria and Morocco are spearheading the search for over $25 billion in bringing to reality the Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline, experts, who gathered in Abuja, yesterday, during the 2024 Africa Gas Innovation Summit (AGIS), said attracting funding remained sacrosanct to the gas resources on the continent.
Director-General, National Office for Hydrocarbons and Mines, Morocco, Amina Benkhadra, who spoke at the event, pegged investment needs in the sector at over $245 billion.
The funding, according to her, is necessary to develop infrastructure for gas development on the continent.
Benkhadra, who noted that $100 billion investment would be needed yearly to bridge energy gap on the continent, said about $3 trillion would be needed for electricity by 2050.
Minister of State, Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, speaking at the conference tagged “Igniting the Future: Driving Sustainability in Africa’s Energy Landscape through Gas Technology and Innovation,” said Africa’s abundant natural gas resources and the continent’s unique position to lead in sustainable development must be harnessed.
He emphasised the importance of effective policy frameworks, capacity building, and fostering entrepreneurship, adding that the success of the sector hinges on the collective ability to develop a skilled and knowledgeable workforce.
Also, the Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari, who was represented by the Executive Vice President, Gas, Power, and New Energies, Olalekan Ogunleye, provided insights into NNPC’s significant investments in the gas sector.
According to him, the recent commissioning of the 5.2mscf per-day Ilasamaja CNG plant is just the beginning, stressing that plans were underway for six additional CNG mother-station plants, marking a significant step forward in the sector.
