- This conference spotlighted Namibia’s energy sector while enhancing collaboration, knowledge, and investment linkages to drive Africa’s energy landscape as a catalyst for socio-economic development.
- Namibia has seen an array of exploration campaigns undertaken over decades, representing one of the final frontiers for hydrocarbon exploration.
The fifth edition of the Namibia International Energy Conference (NIEC) kicked off on April 26, with a welcome address by the Managing Director of the strategic advisory firm, founder and convener of the NIEC, Rich Africa Consultancy, Ndapwilapo Selma Shimutwikeni. On the heels of recent significant hydrocarbon discoveries in Namibia, Shimutwikeni highlighted the southern African country’s burgeoning role as a specialist in foreign policy while optimally benefitting from collaboration and the exploitation of its natural resources.
“As a specialist in natural resource foreign policy, as well as having a passion for Namibia to develop its resources for socio-economic development, I am pleased to see the NIEC grow and attract interest from all over the world,” Shimutwikeni said. His welcome address was followed by opening remarks by the Acting Executive Director for Namibia’s Ministry of Mines & Energy, Bryan Eiseb, who discussed the Government’s dedication to leveraging the southern African country’s diverse energy potential to promote self-sufficiency by building new domestic generation capacity developing interconnectivity systems.
“We proved a working oil system in Namibia, but also proved the presence of light oil, which has been a massive milestone for Namibia,” stated the Country Chair for Shell Namibia, Dennis Sekveld, who delivered an address as part of the conference’s opening remarks, adding, “The reality is, we need to serve a purpose. We must ask ourselves, “What is in it for the country?”. We need to drive local economic opportunities in the country, drive local content development, and promote opportunities that alleviate poverty. We are committed to maximizing local employment in the country and working with the Government towards a multilateral strategy.”
Namibia has seen an array of exploration campaigns undertaken over decades, representing one of the final frontiers for hydrocarbon exploration. As such, NIEC 2023 is set to drive industry growth and development. The theme of the conference, ‘Shaping the Future of Energy Towards Value Creation’, Namibia as a destination for energy investments, will take centre stage during the two-day conference, which is set to take a close look at global and continental energy perspectives and their impact, the latest developments in the oil and gas industry, the status of the power and electricity market, the role of natural gas, as well as the future of renewables.