NNPC Adopting Three Strategies To Carbon-Neutral Economy, Says Kyari

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited is adopting three strategies to achieve a carbon-neutral economy and reduce global warming as well as other effects of climate change in Nigeria.

The Group Managing Director, NNPC, Mele Kyari, said the oil firm would adopt low-carbon technology across its operations, deepen natural gas utilisation to reduce energy poverty and invest in clean energy.

Kyari disclosed this in his contribution in “The 2022 Global Agenda” of the Atlantic Council, which was entitled “Perspective on Energy Transition,” and obtained by our correspondent in Abuja on Sunday.

The Atlantic Council is a nonpartisan organisation that galvanises the United States global leadership and engagement in partnership with allies and partners.

He said, “Our strategy for achieving carbon neutrality is centred around three principles: adoption of low carbon technology across our operations, deepening natural gas utilisation to reduce energy poverty, and investment in clean energy technology and products.

“We believe these principles are most likely to support a smoother transition to a carbon-neutral economy without compromising access to the cheap and readily available energy resources that will be required to address energy poverty and support country specific development priorities.

“Slowing down investment in hydrocarbon ventures may provide the right incentive for the energy transition, but it cannot guarantee global energy security in the near future, especially as energy demands grow faster than renewable energy maturation.”

He said the world therefore needed to adopt a more inclusive consensus, one that would consider complementarities and trade-offs between and within policies and policy objectives.

Kyari said, “As a commercially driven entity, we are leveraging the current industry dynamics to diversify and grow our portfolio in order to maintain relevance in the global energy market.

“Additionally, we are reassessing the brown and green assets for our carbon budget and environmental credentials as part of our transition to an energy company of global excellence.”

The NNPC boss observed that climate change was increasingly becoming a major concern for everyone, as its impact on the environment was seen every day.

He noted that outdoor temperatures and sea levels were rising, water bodies were drying up, and the frequency of major weather events was increasing.

“This worrisome impact of global warming has, over the years, triggered the best of human innovation, especially in the fields of energy and sustainability,” Kyari stated.

He added, “World leaders, leading institutions, scientific communities, businesses, and organisations are leading global solidarity in action against climate change and its impact on life on earth.

“The call to end the use of fossil fuels in order to reduce global carbon dioxide emissions and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 is becoming louder, and the coalition is big, but greater synergy is required to achieve sustainable outcomes.”

This, he said, required the global oil industry to play more than one important role, which was to lower the global carbon foot-print, sustain global energy security, and drive prosperity, especially in developing countries where population growth remained well above global average.