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More than 150 essential oil and gas projects have stalled across Africa amid declining investment in the continent’s energy sector, Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG), Adegbite Falade, has disclosed.
Falade, states this at Africa Oil Week (AOW) 2026 in Accra, Ghana, yesterday.
He warned that the investment shortfall was occurring at a critical time when millions of Africans remain without reliable access to energy.
He said the stalled projects posed a threat to jobs, energy security and economic transformation, while depriving African economies of billions of dollars in potential revenue and industrialisation opportunities.
According to him, Africa attracted only about two per cent of global renewable energy investment last year, even as capital continues to elude its oil and gas industry.
Falade said the situation was particularly troubling given the continent’s vast hydrocarbon resources, with 125 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and 620 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves.
“Africa is resource rich and energy poor. The continent has 125 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and 620 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas,” he said.
He also highlighted what he described as an imbalance in the global climate debate, noting that Africa accounts for approximately 18 per cent of the world’s population but less than four per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
“This capital retreat comes at a precarious moment for a continent faced with energy poverty despite accounting for less than three per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions,” Falade said.
The IPPG chairman called on African governments to urgently restore investor confidence by providing stable fiscal terms, de-risking projects and accelerating regulatory approvals to bring the stalled developments back on stream.
He also advocated greater participation by indigenous operators, citing Nigeria’s experience as evidence of what deliberate policies and access to capital could achieve.
He noted that three decades ago, indigenous operators in Nigeria had three per cent of participation in the country’s oil and gas industry and the significant growth achieved since then.
Falade urged African countries to pursue an energy transition that takes account of the continent’s development needs, arguing that cleaner energy deployment should not prevent countries from using their abundant natural gas resources to address energy poverty.
“We can pursue cleaner energy while still using our gas to power industries, homes, and businesses across the continent,” he said.
He therefore called for increased investment and faster development of Africa’s oil and gas resources, stressing that the continent must leverage its natural wealth to expand energy access, create jobs and drive economic transformation.
