The Chief Executive Officer of Seplat Energy Plc, Mr. Roger Brown, emphasized the need for Africa to reposition its energy industry to achieve greater efficiency in the utilization of energy resources.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 41st Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) International Conference and Exhibition in Lagos, Brown delivered a stakeholder contribution to the theme “Repositioning the Oil & Gas Industry for Future Energy Dynamics.”
Brown underscored the pivotal role that energy will play in shaping the continent’s future, urging African countries to recognize this and work towards the integration of the energy value chain to facilitate anticipated progress.
“Repositioning the oil and gas sector for the future requires the understanding of certain fundamentals, including accepting the fact that the sector will have a key role to play well into the future – particularly in Africa,” stated Brown.
He highlighted the imperative for the energy industry to enhance its resource efficiency and stressed the essential nature of integrating the energy value chain.
Brown also emphasized the significance of a functioning energy backbone (Base load) as a barrier to wide-scale renewable energy adoption.
Acknowledging the delicate balance between development and environmental concerns, Brown emphasized, “Development and Environment must not become competing objectives.”
Energy, according to Brown, is critical to the economic and social development of the region. Noting that more than 600 million Africans lack access to energy, and over 900 million do not have access to clean cooking, Brown highlighted the need for a substantial increase in investment to address these challenges.
Industry data reveals that fewer than half of the utilities in sub-Saharan Africa recover their operating costs, and the region generates roughly the same energy as Spain, despite having a combined population of approximately 1 billion.
Industry sources say five-fold increase in investment is required to reach United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 7 by 2030. There are 17 SDGs for Africa to achieve.
For the Energy Outlook, achieving Africa’s energy and climate goals means more than doubling energy investment this decade; of which the goal of universal access to modern energy calls for investment of USD 25 billion per year
For Seplat Energy, Nigeria’s energy trilemma, which drives energy transition remains sustainability, energy security/access and energy affordability.
