Follow Us on Google
By Adewale Sanyaolu
The Federal Government has announced plans to seal the Final Investment Decisions (FID) on two more projects, including a multibillion billion-dollar deepwater exploration project.
This will be the first of its kind in Nigeria in over a decade and the government said it is one of many to come.
Special Adviser on Energy to the President, Olu Verheijen, stated this in her opening address titled “The Future of Energy: Shaping the Workforce of Tomorrow” at the African Energy Week (AEW), which ended in Cape Town, South Africa, recently.
The presidential aide noted that the regulatory framework of the President in the sector is already yielding positive results.
“We see a Nigeria that is a leading global producer and exporter of energy – whether its fossil fuels or renewables. We are not held back by the outdated approaches and assumptions of the past. We are open, daring, and eager to leave a legacy that will stand the test of time,”.
Verheijen added that Nigeria has attracted over $1billion in investment in the oil and gas sector across different value chains.
“Nigeria’s Petroleum Industry Act(PIA) took twenty years to be passed into law and given Presidential assent, in 2021. We are now building on that foundation with an unprecedented sense of urgency, to completely rewrite the narrative of oil and gas investment in Nigeria.
We are already seeing the fruit of our work. Regulatory approvals are being expedited, major investment decisions are being Finalized across the value chain.
We have unlocked over $1 billion in investments across the value chain and by the middle of 2025, we expect to see Final Investment Decisions on two more projects, including a multibillion billion-dollar deepwater exploration project, which will be the first of its kind in Nigeria in over a decade – one of many to come.
We see the abundant opportunities that lie ahead. We see a Nigeria that is a leading global producer and exporter of energy – whether it’s fossil fuels or renewables. We are not held back by the outdated approaches and assumptions of the past. We are open, daring, and eager to leave a legacy that will stand the test of time,” Verheijen said.
She explained that, as Africans, we are at a point in our developmental process where energy access is critical in shaping the continent’s future.
According to her, our resources (including renewables) are abundant, yet over 75 per cent of the population lack sufficient energy access, stressing that as a continent seeking to change this narrative, we must ensure that energy ceases to be the limiting factor in Africa but rather becomes a tool for driving industrialization and development.
“One of the ways we can address this is through a productive energy workforce. There is no doubt that the future we are moving into will be very different from where we are coming and what we are used to.
It will take incredible amounts of human energy and a diversity of talent and expertise to enable us adapt to these rapidly evolving and often unpredictable scenarios and circumstances. In summary: we are the ones who will determine the outcome of the delicate balance between energy security, affordability and sustainability for this continent,”.
