By Patience Chat Moses
A senior analyst with Rystad Energy, Mr Siva Prasad, has identified and commended Nigeria as an African country with great potentials in the energy sector.
Prasad said this while coordinating one of the technical sessions at this year’s African Energy Week (AEW) which started today in Cape Town, South Africa. The session which was hosted by Rystad Energy was on the dynamics of member countries of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Africa, their past, present, and future roles.
During his presentation, Mr. Prasad underscored Nigeria’s considerable promise, despite facing challenges related to numerous onshore and offshore development partnerships with international oil majors.
He emphasized Nigeria’s potential as one of the most promising countries in Africa, while also acknowledging that issues like oil theft have hindered the nation’s daily oil production.
He however expressed optimism that the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) could pave the way for positive developments in Nigeria’s oil industry.
While leading the session, he also offered a comprehensive analysis of the historical, current, and anticipated status of African OPEC players and provided insights into the potential and capabilities of each member country throughout these time frames.
Notably, Mr Prasad highlighted Nigeria, Angola and Libya as the three major oil-producing countries in Africa.
The Rystad Energy analyst also noted that there have been a significant increase in oil production in North African countries, specifically Algeria and Libya, which he suggested could be transformative for these nations.
Additionally, he pointed out that Angola has emerged as a key player, with the introduction of multiple deepwater Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) units throughout the 2000s resulting in a substantial production boost.
Mr Prasad further mentioned that despite their relatively smaller volumes, Equatorial Guinea has shown steady growth due to projects operated by international Exploration and Production (E&P) companies adding that Gabon and Congo have maintained consistent supplies in their respective regions, contributing to the overall stability of the African OPEC landscape.
Rystad Energy is an independent energy research and business intelligence company headquartered in Oslo, Norway. It is the biggest independent energy consultancy in Norway, and a world-leading analysis company for the energy sector. The company provides mainly oil and gas analyses, but the share of renewable energy and carbon emission analyses has increased continuously.