Energy Not Available In Nigeria, Mele Kyari Declares

The Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), NNPC Limited, Mallam Mele Kyari, on Tuesday, declared that energy is not available in Nigeria as over 70 percent of the population do not have access to clean cooking oil, while over 50 percent of the population also do not have access to electricity.

Kyari stated this while speaking on the topic: ‘Nigeria’s Energy Landscape, for sustainable energy future’ at the ongoing Nigerian Oil and Gas Conference christened NOG 2023 conference in Abuja.

He said: “What are we talking about, it is about energy availability, affordability and sustainability. Everybody wants this not just Nigeria, not Africa but every part of the world thinks this same way: that energy must be available, it must be affordable and also it must be supplied in a sustainable manner.

“But where are we in our country today, in terms of availability, 70 percent of our population does not have access to clean cooking oil. Over 50 percent don’t have access to electricity. And that is the truth, so is energy available or is it a problem of affordability or is it that we have an unsustainable framework?

“It is a combination of all of them, I think we are dealing with a combination of all of them. Energy is not available. It is not affordable, in very many senses, because of many of the structures that have been mentioned here earlier, pricing, many issues that have made affordability a matter of concern. You can’t even afford financing for it.

“Nobody is going to give you money for a project that you are not going to get back your money. And that is what it is, today, NNPC is exposed to all of you now. Not just the government, you supply gas you don’t get Payment for it. You supply power you don’t get Payment for it. So you can’t run any business this way. So it cannot be sustainable. You cannot create affordable energy and it will not be available. So there are some multiple issues that are for all of us”.

Also speaking at the event, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Ambassador Gabriel Tanimu Aduda, expressed delight at the gathering saying it provided an opportunity for stakeholders to look each other in the face, identify the realities and begin to seek results going forward.

Ambassador Aduda, also reiterated that a lot is happening in the petroleum industry, adding that whether anybody likes it or not, fossil fuels will still be here with us for over 100 years to come, despite the raging campaign for the energy transition.

Aduda said that over 40 percent of Africa’s energy mix comes from renewable energy, which he said is way higher than any other continent on the Earth.

He noted that 22 countries out of 54 depend solely on renewable energy.