African Energy Week 2023: Stakeholders Make Case for Continent’s Energy Security
- Call on Western nations to Invest climate mitigation funds in carbon capture technologies
By Yange Ikyaa
From October 18 to 20, the African Energy Week, an annual event organized by the African Energy Chamber, held at its regular venue in Cape Town, South Africa, with “The African Renaissance: Prioritizing Energy Poverty, People, Planet, Industrialization and Free Markets,” serving as this year’s theme for the conference.
Among attendees at the 2023 event were past and present Presidents, energy ministers, global leaders of energy institutions, CEOs of national and multinational energy companies, regulators, financiers, and energy experts from diverse segments of the energy industry.
Some of the issues discussed at the conference ranged from less contentious to very contentious ones, and one of the firmest positions was held by Dr. Omar Farouk Ibrahim, Secretary General of the African Petroleum Producers Organization (APPO), who first observed that even though the world has come to accept a global paradigm shift in energy sourcing, especially since the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015, that paradigm shift has thrown up new challenges, particularly to non-industrialized underdeveloped countries in Africa.
He also noted that the search for solutions to the identified challenges has not been intellectually rigorous. According to him, there are contradictions in accepting the reality of energy transition and the challenges that come with it on the one hand. On the other hand, he said that the search for solutions to those challenges is being done using the same old tools used in the pre-paradigm shift era.
Against this backdrop, APPO is said to have since started preparing to survey its member countries, where one of the achievements is the progress made in getting the developed countries over the last 150 years to realize that their “selfish” economic activities have caused the planet, which is a common patrimony of all the peoples, animals and plants living on it, the imminent climate catastrophe that it faces.
“If all of us, those who caused the emissions, as well as the bystanders, do not collectively act fast to drastically reduce emissions, by deploying CDR technologies to reduce legacy emissions, all attempts to address the climate challenge shall remain futile. Climate Funds should be used to further develop and deploy CDR technologies in order to reduce the legacy emissions,” said Dr. Farouk.
According to him, today’s industrialized countries did not stumble upon the knowledge of the dangers of burning fossil fuels to the atmosphere in the last 50 years. He further argued that as far back as 1896, a Swedish climate scientist, Svante Arrhenius, had established a link between carbon dioxide emissions and rising atmospheric temperatures, and that before him, an Irish scientist, John Tyndall, had in 1859 discovered the greenhouse gas effect, which is the process of atmospheric gas trapping.
“But because these countries and their leaders were determined to industrialize, to meet the living standards of their people better, these studies were carefully hidden away from the public.
Now that they are fully industrialized and have transformed their economies from reliance on heavy industries to the production of services and artificial intelligence and Africa is on the verge of industrialization, we are being told not to use that reliable, affordable and accessible energy that played a key role in making the difference between us and them today,” said the APPO scribe.
While the developed world had agreed to establish a Climate Fund for adaptation and mitigation, and while they pledged $100 million annually in response to pressure for a just energy transition, Dr. Farouk stated that, sadly, many victims of the actions of the industrialized countries are happy with these developments and in anticipation of getting a share of the climate funds, while producing and submitting nationally determined contributions (NDCs) that they know are unachievable in the timeframe that they give.
On the climate funds, the APPO Boss suggested that the developed countries, who incidentally are also the ones with the technology, should invest those funds in further developing and deploying carbon capture technologies.
According to him, “when they have done this over the next 15 to 25 years, and have succeeded in removing just 500 Megatonnes, or just 25% of the 2500 Megatonnes of emissions that was added to the atmosphere in the last 150 years, primarily by the industrialized countries, that will give Africa the opportunity to also industrialize using what is today, the most reliable, affordable and accessible form of energy, the same energy form that developed countries used to get to where they are today.
Africa shall not give back 500 Mega tons before it gets industrialized. Even 50% of that shall suffice and the world would be better for it.”
If this happens, Dr. Farouk said, there will be less inequality and, more importantly, the atmosphere will be 250 Megatonnes less saturated with carbon emissions. “In other words, we are saying that keep your money, but clean up the mess that you created,” he insisted.
APPO says its vision is to create an integrated energy infrastructure market across the continent, and African countries are expected to consider becoming members of the APPO family. However, they will need not to necessarily be oil-producing nations to become members of the new APPO, which is now evolving.
The APPO Scribe further urged all countries and institutions inside and outside of Africa that share “our vision “to end energy poverty on the continent and ensure energy security and industrial development for our people to consider being part of the African Energy Bank, which APPO and the Africa Export-Import Bank are promoting.
On his part, OPEC Secretary General, Haitham Al-Ghais, who addressed the conference from the OPEC Secretariat in Vienna, observed that Africa’s peoples and sovereign nations are drawing inspiration from what they want their own futures to look like and working hard to make this a reality.
He added that Africa’s future looks very bright in this respect, as the continent will have the world’s largest working-age population by 2040, apart from holding an estimated 120 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, 18 trillion standard cubic meters of natural gas reserves, and many other resources to help propel it forward.
To realize this potential, Al-Ghais said, policymakers must realize that every nation has its own energy transition pathway to a sustainable energy future, and that global policymakers should pay equal attention to energy security, energy affordability, and institutions.
According to OPEC data, the global oil sector will require human and capital investment of $12 trillion through to 2045 to continue meeting demand and delivering energy security, and ignoring the reality that recent annual investment levels have been well below the peak poses a great risk to energy security and needs to be remedied.
According to the Vienna-based energy cartel, primary energy demand will expand by over 20% between now and 2045, and oil demand will increase to around 110 million barrels per day in 2045, while Africa is expected to see oil demand increase by close to 80%.
“Moving forward, we need to strike a balance between delivering the affordable energy products and services that people require to live a comfortable life and reducing emissions. In this respect, technological innovation is a key focus to ensure a sustainable future,” said Al-Ghais.
While many OPEC member countries are already investing heavily in hydrogen projects, as well as in carbon capture, utilization and storage facilities or the circular carbon economy, more countries across Africa, including Nigeria, may be able to do the same thing if properly allowed to utilize the natural resources to generate revenues.
As the OPEC Secretary General believes, “global climate challenges should be addressed fairly, especially as Africa contributes around 3% to global annual greenhouse gas emissions. This is vital in a continent where hundreds of millions of people still lack access to electricity, and still rely on inefficient and polluting cooking systems.
“Everyone must understand that energy transition means something very different. For those with very basic energy needs, delivering universal energy access must be a priority.”
In agreement with the official position of OPEC, Nigeria’s Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, said that the question of justice must be addressed in the global energy transition agenda, as Africans also need the available resources at their disposal to be able to achieve development in the face of over 600 million people without access to electricity and many more without access to clean and efficient cooking fuels.
The Chairman of African Energy Chamber, NJ Ayuk, in canvassing support for African energy sustainability plan, said “let’s go Africa, select Africa, choose Africa, invest in Africa, be bold, and don’t back down on these industries; and stand with your energy producers like the junkyard dog in the face of the hurricane.”
Ayuk also expressed his happiness that OPEC continues to play a crucial role in maintaining stability in the global oil market, adding that over the past month, OPEC has worked tirelessly to ensure market stability, which has benefited both oil and gas-producing countries, as well as global consumers.
His words: “We recognize the detrimental impact of a volatile oil market on the global economy, and thus, OPEC takes its responsibility very seriously. Our decisions are based on data and not influenced by political considerations.
“Moving forward, OPEC will continue to closely monitor market conditions and work closely with African countries, including our African member nations, as well as non-member countries, to strengthen the spirit of our declaration of cooperation and provide every opportunity for African states to grow and benefit from their power and gas industries.”
The Minister of Hydrocarbons of the Republic of Congo, Bruno Itoua, also addressed the conference, saying that “energy, and more generally gas, will be not only for export but will also be for domestic markets, for people, for relations, but also as a vital element for our mining industry, our chemical sector, and for energizing our special economic zones.”
