Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government has said the country’s approach towards the climate-change-net-zero-emission debate is to optimise the use of its abundant gas resource domestically as a transition fuel.
This was made known by Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr Timipre Sylva, during his address at the Nigeria Annual International Conference & Exhibition (NAICE) organised by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) in Lagos.
He said that the utilisation of gas towards meeting the country’s national needs as promised by President Muhammadu Buhari was Nigeria’s own contribution towards climate change.
“As a government, we are determined to encourage more penetration of natural gas and its derivatives for domestic utilisation, power generation, gas-based industries and propulsion in all aspects of the national economy.
“This would in a fundamental manner address the great challenge posed by volatile oil market, the environmental issues and public health concerns,” he said.
Speaking on the future of the global oil market, Mr Sylva said it was imperative that the global order to migrate from a fossil fuel-based economy to renewable would engender a corresponding decline in hydrocarbon.
Mr Sylva said this includes possible divestiture in the sector as deliberate frameworks are being championed to discourage the extraction of carbon-laden resources.
“The COVID-19 Pandemic has further exacerbated the investment decline,” he added.
According to him, the Nigerian government in collaboration with global partners was exploring policies, technologies and investments to address the current global challenge that will support migration from the country’s reliance on carbon dependent fuels to meeting its commitment to the Paris Agreement.
He argued that although the industry was beset by the unprecedented crisis as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic which led to uncertainties and low crude oil price, however, the scenario that energy transition to low carbon energy sources would make the world a better living place with a cleaner climate does not match all economies.
“I believe so too, likewise the Government of Nigeria, however, that this process of change has to happen by way of a simultaneous global effort of transitioning national economies to the use of low carbon energy solutions.
“It is an assumption that all national economies are driven by the same parameters and does not take into account the different socio-economic, political and developmental peculiarities of individual nations,” he said.
