The Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Ltd, Mr. Mele Kyari, yesterday reflected on the search for sustainable solution to decarbonised energy.
He said the African Continent needed “a just, differentiated transition” to harness its resources for the benefit of its future generations.
Kyari spoke at a Regional CEO Panel organised by McKinsey & Company on the sidelines of the ongoing United Nations Conference on Climate Change (UNCCC) in Dubai, United Arab Emirate (UAE).
The GCEO, who joined other global energy leaders from the United States, Holland, and Oman to highlight energy perspectives and insights on the evolving energy market, said the world must understand Africa’s peculiarities in addressing the effects of climate change on energy businesses.
In a statement by NNPC’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Mr. Olufemi O. Soneye, the GCEO called for a differentiated energy transition.
Kyari said,
“I have always advocated for a differentiated and just energy transition. In Africa, we have different circumstances compared to other places in the world.
“In Africa today, 75 per cent of our population doesn’t have access to electricity, leaving us with biomass as a key energy source. The world needs to recognize that the most practicable thing today is to substitute what we have in the short term to close the energy gap for our rising population.”
Noting that Nigeria may be among the global top 10 economies by 2035 and third in terms of the global population, Kyari said the energy poverty question should be discussed as nations unite to achieve net zero by 2050.
He said with abundant natural gas reserves of 206 trillion cubic feet (tcf) that have the potential to rise to 600tcf, Nigeria is currently utilizing gas to drive its journey towards energy transition.
Kyari said NNPC Ltd was creating a regional gas pipeline network to supply natural gas across the African continent and boost its Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) supply to the foreign market.
He said the idea of eliminating gas flares from gas projects was meant to deploy the gas towards developing power plants nationwide.
Kyari said the move will boost national electricity supply, create employment opportunities, and trigger the nation’s industrial and economic development.
He said that to demonstrate NNPC Ltd’s commitment to a net-zero future by 2025, the Company recently signed up as a participant in the United Nations Global Compact in New York, becoming the first state-owned oil company to join the global initiative.