Foreign investors’ exit exposes need for local energy funding –Oando

The General Manager, Corporate Communications, Oando Energy Resources Nigeria Limited, Mrs Alero Balogun has asserted that Nigeria urgently needs to deepen domestic financing and build indigenous capacity as international capital retreats from Africa.

Balogun said the withdrawal of foreign financing had exposed a fundamental mismatch between the funding requirements of Africa’s energy sector and the willingness of international lenders to support projects in the region.

She stated this at a high-level strategic panel session at the 2026 Energy Conference of the Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC) held in Lagos, recently.

The conference, themed “Access to Assets: Empowering Players and Driving Growth,” brought together industry leaders and regulators to examine barriers to growth in Nigeria’s energy sector.

Speaking on financing gaps, Balogun said the global lending environment had become increasingly challenging for oil and gas projects in Africa, making it necessary for Nigeria to develop alternative funding sources to sustain investment and expand indigenous participation. “There is a mismatch between the kind of capital that Nigeria or Africa’s energy sector requires and what the international lending system is currently prepared to provide,” she said.

According to her, Nigeria must develop a robust domestic financial ecosystem capable of supporting long-term, high-risk investments across the energy value chain.

“Nigerians have to start to build our own financial ecosystem so that we are doing the financing ourselves,” she stressed.

Balogun noted that oil and gas investments require patient, long-term capital because of their extended development timelines and inherent operational risks. However, she said foreign financiers were increasingly reluctant to fund projects with such characteristics. She attributed the reluctance of international lenders to a combination of operating risks, policy inconsistency and regulatory uncertainty in African markets.

Balogun warned that unless Nigeria improves its operating environment, reduces investment risks and mobilises domestic capital, indigenous operators could continue to face constraints in accessing assets and expanding their operations. Other panellists included Mr Austin Avuru, Executive Chairman and Founder of AA Holdings Ltd; Mrs Cecilia Olajumoke Ajayi, President of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE); and Mr Wole Ogunsanya, Chairman of the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN). The session was moderated by Mr Chike Nwosu, Group Chief Executive Officer of HSI Energies Ltd.