- OPEC to prioritise Africa’s energy needs in its energy transition plans.
The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has announced that the organisation will make provision for the millions of Africans without access to electricity in its global energy transition discussion. The new secretary-general, Kuwait’s Haitham Al Ghais, disclosed this intention.
Al Ghais spoke at a virtual event where he engaged the Nigerian media on his immediate plans for the oil industry after assuming duty as the organisation’s new head.
“The African continent has over 1.2 billion population, with over 600 people without electricity. There is an ongoing discussion about energy transition, and the voice of the people needs to be heard and taken into consideration and accounted for.
“In the energy transition, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Everybody’s voice must be represented, and everybody must be part of the dialogue, particularly on the African continent,” he declared.
While underscoring the critical role Nigeria plays in OPEC and its pivotal place in the African oil and gas market, he promised to visit Nigeria soon, saying that with the cooperation of Nigeria and other member nations, OPEC would weather the storms in the global oil market.
The OPEC scribe described the ongoing construction of a regional gas pipeline that would convey Nigeria’s gas to Niger, Algeria, and then Europe as a significant development, stressing, “any assistance to be rendered to the continent must be collectively discussed and agreed on by all stakeholders in OPEC.”
According to him, while OPEC decisions are usually collective, the framework laid in stabilising the global oil industry by Barkindo would not be abandoned.