The Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC) has said an intervention by the country’s ports regulator has spared it
read more NDPHC credits NPA for saving billions in stranded cargo
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), and the OML 118 Contractor Parties — Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo), Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Deepwater) Limited, and Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited (NAE) have jointly executed the Addendum to the OML 118 Production Sharing Contract (PSC) and the Addendum to the Dispute Settlement Agreement (DSA), marking a major milestone in the advancement of the deepwater Bonga Southwest/Aparo project (BWSAp) towards Final Investment Decision (FID).
The execution on Monday, 22nd, August, gives effect to the fiscal and commercial terms approved by the Federal Government to support the development of BSWAp reinforcing Nigeria’s commitment to creating a competitive, stable and attractive environment for large-scale deepwater investment.
The milestone according to the NNPC follows the approval by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the Deep Offshore Oil and Gas Projects Incentives (Tax Remission) Order, 2026, an important component of the Federal Government’s ongoing reforms to enhance the competitiveness of Nigeria’s deepwater sector and unlock new investment. The BSWA PSC and DSA Addenda the NNPC has also disclosed demonstrate the practical impact of these reforms in translating policy into investment and project development.
BSWAp is expected to be one of Nigeria’s largest deepwater developments, with the potential to attract US$15 billion to US$21 billion in investment over the life of the project and achieve peak production of about 175 kbopd of oil and 140 mmscfd of gas. The development NNPC also noted is expected to contribute significantly to Nigeria’s economy through increased oil and gas production, government revenues, foreign exchange earnings, local content development, employment and expanded opportunities for Nigerian businesses.
Speaking on the milestone, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Engr. Bashir Bayo Ojulari, said: “The execution of the BSWAp PSC and DSA Addenda demonstrates the effectiveness of President Tinubu’s reforms in translating policy into investment. This is about unlocking a major deepwater project and demonstrating that Nigeria has a competitive fiscal framework and a clear pathway for sustainable investment in its energy sector. NNPC Ltd will continue to work closely with the Federal Government, our partners and other stakeholders to ensure that this project delivers maximum value for the Federation and the Nigerian people.”
The Contractor Parties also announced the successful completion of the project’s Pre-Front End Engineering Design (Pre-FEED) phase, marking an important milestone in maturing the technical and commercial scope of the development and positioning the project to progress into the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) phase, subject to applicable partner, assurance and governance requirements.
Following a competitive selection process, a bidder has been identified as the preferred Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) contractor for the BSWA project, subject to completion of applicable partner, regulatory, assurance and governance processes. The selection provides a basis for progressing the FPSO concept into FEED and for undertaking the further engineering and commercial work required to mature the project towards FID. Any eventual award of the FPSO Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Installation (EPCI) contract remains subject to the completion of all applicable approvals and requirements.
Once operational, BSWAp is expected to become one of Nigeria’s most significant new deepwater production hubs, contributing materially to national oil production and supporting the country’s ambition to sustainably grow oil and gas output over the coming years.
The project is expected to deliver substantial benefits to Nigeria through billions of dollars of investment, increased participation by Nigerian contractors and suppliers, and significant direct and indirect employment opportunities across engineering, fabrication, offshore construction, logistics and operations.
BSWAp is also expected to strengthen Nigerian content through increased contracting opportunities for indigenous companies, enhance local fabrication, marine and engineering capabilities, facilitate technology transfer and skills development, and create lasting value across the wider Nigerian economy.
The milestone reflects the strong collaboration among NNPC Ltd, the Federal Government, relevant regulatory agencies and the OML 118 Contractor Parties , and reinforces Nigeria’s position as a competitive destination for deepwater investment.
NNPC Ltd reaffirmed its commitment to working with all stakeholders to advance the BSWA project safely, competitively and responsibly, while maximising value for Nigeria and the Nigerian people.
The post Bonga South-West Aparo Project: NNPC, OML 118 Contractor Parties Execute PSC and DSA Addenda first appeared on Energy News Stream.
By Dr Abba Aliyu
The traditional mini-grid model begins with, “How many households can we connect?”
The emerging model should additionally ask, “What economy can we create around this electricity asset?”
A modern distributed-energy system can simultaneously serve households, commercial businesses, telecommunications towers, irrigation, agricultural processing, cold storage, health facilities, schools, electric mobility, government infrastructure, manufacturing, digital services, edge computing and eventually
distributed data-centre infrastructure.
This transforms a mini-grid from a social infrastructure project into an economic platform.
THE PARTICULAR OPPORTUNITY FOR REA
The Nigeria National Rural Electrification Agency (REA) ttherefore has an opportunity to evolve conceptually from being principally an electrification agency toward becoming one of the institutions enabling Nigeria’s distributed energy economy.
REA’s competitive advantage lies precisely where much of the future global energy industry is moving generation closer to demand.
Distributed energy can reduce the dependency on lengthy transmission expansion and enable investment to follow productive electricity demand directly.
Future programmes could therefore deliberately identify locations where electricity demand from including but not limited to agriculture, industry, telecoms, public infrastructure and digital services.All of which can be aggregated around the same distributed energy asset.
This materially improves project economics.
THE EVEN BIGGER OPPORTUNITY FOR RAMCO
This global transformation strengthens the strategic rationale for the Renewable Asset Management Company (RAMCO).
The next generation of energy infrastructure cannot simply be:
Build > Commission > Hand over > Move to the next project.
Assets must continually be: Operated > Monitored > Optimised > Maintained > Monetised > Refinanced > Expanded.
RAMCO can therefore evolve beyond simply protecting renewable-energy assets.It can become an energy asset optimisation and capital recycling platform.
Imagine a portfolio containing hundreds of operational renewable-energy assets.Instead of treating every mini-grid as an isolated project, RAMCO could aggregate:
1. Electricity revenues
2. Operating histories
3. Customer profiles
4. Equipment performance
5. Energy demand
6. Carbon attributes
7. Productive-use demand
8. Future cash flows
The portfolio then becomes substantially more attractive to institutional capital.This creates a virtuous cycle.
Build assets
↓
Operate them successfully
↓
Aggregate predictable revenues
↓
Refinance operational assets
↓
Recycle capital
↓
Build additional assets
That is how renewable electrification can gradually transition from dependence upon annual public expenditure toward a self-reinforcing infrastructure financing ecosystem.
FIVE ACTIONS NIGERIA SHOULD TAKE NOW
ACTION 1 — Develop a National “Energy for AI and Digital Infrastructure” Strategy
Nigeria should immediately map her
electricity resources, fibre infrastructure, land, water availability, population centres, renewable resources and gas infrastructure.
The objective should be identifying locations capable of hosting future data centres, cloud infrastructure, AI computing, digital industrial parks and
high-performance computing infrastructure.
Instead of waiting for technology companies to tell the government what they require, Nigeria should proactively say, “Here are 10 investment-ready locations where we can guarantee power, land, and connectivity.”
This will change the investment conversation completely.
ACTION 2 — Create “Digital Energy Zones”
Nigeria should designate locations where developers can simultaneously access power, land, fibre, get permits easily and provide fiscal incentives.
These could initially be located near major cities, universities, industrial clusters, renewable-resource zones,
gas infrastructure and existing high-capacity electricity infrastructure.
REA and state governments could pioneer smaller versions through distributed-energy clusters. This creates a Nigerian variation of the emerging global data-centre-energy campus.
ACTION 3 — Make storage a core part of Nigeria’s electricity strategy
China and California demonstrate that simply installing renewable capacity is insufficient.
Nigeria should therefore accelerate the deployment of Solar + Storage rather than viewing batteries as an optional addition.
Storage should increasingly become a central component of interconnected mini-grids, isolated mini-grids, industrial power, distribution networks, renewable integration and grid balancing.
Nigeria should aim to create an indigenous battery-storage ecosystem, including assembly, integration, software, maintenance, and eventually component manufacturing.
ACTION 4 — Transform mini-grids Into productive-energy platforms
Future mini-grid procurement and financing should place greater emphasis on the economic activity created by electricity.
Instead of measuring success primarily by connections, we can begin to measure success by: MW DEPLOYED + kWh CONSUMED} + BUSINESSES CREATED + JOBS CREATED + AGRICULTURAL OUTPUT + DIGITAL ACTIVITY + PRIVATE CAPITAL MOBILISED.
This fundamentally changes the value proposition of rural electrification.
The objective becomes not simply, “Electricity for communities” but it becomes, “Electricity for prosperity.”
ACTION 5 — Position RAMCO as Nigeria’s renewable infrastructure capital-recycling platform
RAMCO should be structured from the beginning around three objectives:
1. Asset sustainability
Ensuring that publicly supported renewable assets remain operational throughout their intended economic life.
2. Asset optimisation
Using modern monitoring, AI, predictive maintenance, and demand analytics to maximise asset performance.
3. Capital recycling
Aggregating mature assets and cash flows so institutional investors, pension capital, infrastructure funds, climate funds, and private investors can refinance them.
Government and development-partner money would therefore perform a catalytic function.
Instead of ₦1 invested = one infrastructure asset}, the objective becomes, ₦1 invested = asset = revenue = refinancing = additional asset = additional refinancing.
That is how limited public capital can potentially support multiples of its original infrastructure value.
A FINAL THOUGHT
The great technology race of the twentieth century was built around oil. The first phase of the digital economy was built around telecommunications and computing.
The next phase may increasingly be built around the intersection of intelligence and electricity.
The countries that recognise this earliest will possess an extraordinary advantage. The United States is restarting nuclear plants. Google is supporting advanced nuclear reactors. Meta is contracting gigawatts of nuclear capacity. Amazon is investing in small modular reactors. OpenAI is combining data-centre development with energy infrastructure.
Elon Musk’s xAI is developing dedicated generation because it cannot afford to wait indefinitely for traditional electricity infrastructure.
They are all responding to the same reality. The AI revolution is becoming an electricity revolution.
Nigeria therefore faces a choice. We can remain a country struggling to produce enough electricity for yesterday’s economy or we can begin building an electricity system deliberately designed for tomorrow’s economy.
For REA, this means moving from electrification toward distributed economic infrastructure.
For RAMCO, it means moving beyond asset maintenance toward asset optimisation, monetisation, and capital recycling.
Finally for Nigeria, it means recognising one strategic truth, that every reliable megawatt we create today is not merely electricity capacity. It is a potential industrial, digital, AI capacity and ultimately, it is economic sovereignty.
Abba Aliyu is the Managing Director of Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency (REA). This piece is Part 2 of a two-part series exploring the intersection of AI, electricity infrastructure and Nigeria’s path to prosperity.
The post From megawatts to prosperity: Rural electrification in the age of AI first appeared on Energy News Stream.
The 5th REEEA-Alliance International Investment & Partnership Conference has concluded with the unanimous adoption of a 12-point Action Communiqué designed to address some of the most persistent barriers to investment, project execution, energy access and industrial participation in Nigeria’s clean-energy market.
Held at the Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, under the theme “Accelerating Collective Action and Strategic Partnerships for Equitable Clean Energy Access,” the two-day conference brought together federal and sub-national government representatives, development-finance institutions, international development partners, commercial financiers, energy developers, professional associations and other stakeholders to move the clean-energy conversation from policy ambition towards bankable projects, accessible finance and measurable implementation.
At the centre of the conference was a recognition that Nigeria’s energy challenge is no longer simply about generating more electricity, but about creating the policy certainty, financial architecture, technical standards, market structures and human-capital systems required to deliver clean energy at scale.
The urgency is underscored by the country’s continuing electricity supply deficit. Conference discussions noted that grid supply remains in the range of 3,500MW to 4,500MW for a population of more than 220 million, while commercial centres such as Lagos rely heavily on costly diesel and petrol-based self-generation.
The conference therefore positioned the development of decentralised clean-energy markets as both an energy-access imperative and an economic opportunity.
From Policy Dialogue to Implementation
Dr. Imamuddeen Talba, Pioneer Chairman of the Steering Committee, who opened the day two plenary while giving his goodwill remarks underscored the urgency of moving Nigeria’s clean-energy sector from policy formulation to practical, bankable execution.
His intervention set the tone for a day focused increasingly on the mechanisms required to convert Nigeria’s clean-energy ambitions into investable projects, scalable businesses and measurable outcomes; a discourse which had the DG of Energy Commission of Nigeria, Dr Mustapha Abdullahi, represented by Dr Aminu Isa, giving insights into the commission’s drive on policy implementation.
The session also marked an important leadership transition within the Alliance, with Engr. Ayodeji Dada hosting the day two proceedings after being formally inaugurated as President of the Governing Council of the REEEA-Alliance on Day one.
In his address, Dada highlighted the opportunities created by the Electricity Act 2023, particularly the growing autonomy of sub-national electricity markets. He pointed to the combination of state-level market development and predictable federal fiscal incentives as critical to creating the certainty required to accelerate investment in decentralised clean-energy solutions.
The intervention reinforced one of the conference’s central themes: Nigeria’s energy transition will depend not only on policy but on the ability of stakeholders to create the conditions under which projects can move from concept to construction, financing and deployment.
1. De-risking Sub-National Clean-Energy Markets
One of the conference’s major resolutions focused on accelerating the development of sub-national electricity markets.
The assembly commended states such as Ondo State for establishing independent electricity-market structures through the Ondo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (OSERC), Open Access regulations and feeder ceding.
The communiqué called for stronger coordination among the Federal Ministry of Finance, PEBEC and the Nigeria Customs Service to streamline access to Import Duty Exemption Certificates (IDEC) and VAT exemptions for qualifying clean-energy investments.
It also highlighted major sovereign and development-finance instruments already available to support decentralised energy deployment, including the $750 million World Bank-supported Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-Up (DARES) programme and its $188 million Green Finance and Investment Facility (GFIF).
According to the conference material, the programme is designed to support electrification of 226,000 households through 40 interconnected mini-grids with a combined capacity of 188.4MW.
The emphasis was clear: financing facilities must be translated into projects that reach communities, businesses and productive-use customers.
2. Making Clean-Energy Projects Bankable
The conference also confronted one of the most significant barriers to clean-energy investment in Nigeria: the cost and structure of finance.
The communiqué called for project debt to be denominated in single-digit local-currency interest rates, with the objective of reducing foreign-exchange mismatch and making clean-energy projects more financially viable.
The discussion reflected the difficult lending environment facing energy developers, particularly where commercial lending costs remain elevated.
Olasunkanmi Owoeye, Group Head at Sterling Bank, highlighted the potential of combining commercial deposits with development-finance institution credit lines.
He reported that Sterling Bank’s HEART strategy had already unlocked more than ₦50 billion in climate loans, with the institution targeting ₦200 billion by the end of 2026.
The intervention reinforced a central message from the conference: Nigeria does not necessarily lack financing instruments; the greater challenge is structuring and blending those instruments in ways that make clean-energy projects sufficiently bankable for investors and lenders.
3. Investment Lounge: Where Clean-Energy Projects Met Capital
One of the defining features of Day Two was the REEEA-Alliance Investment Lounge, a dedicated business-matching platform that ran concurrently with the conference’s panel sessions.
Rather than functioning as a conventional networking space, the Investment Lounge was designed to connect clean-energy developers and businesses directly with financiers, development-finance institutions, investment facilitators, advisory organisations and other potential partners.
The initiative addressed a fundamental challenge in Nigeria’s clean-energy market: the gap between the growing pipeline of energy projects and the capital, technical assistance and institutional support required to take those projects to scale.
The Lounge brought together a diverse group of participants across the financing and clean-energy ecosystem, including representatives of the Africa Regional Representation of the Green Climate Fund, as well as development and investment-sector stakeholders and clean-energy businesses.
Among those participating were Barr. Titi Akosa, Henry Bassey of GreenHub Africa, and Boluwasope Ogboye, Founder & Principal Consultant of The BOPFA Company, a catalytic funding connector.
The participation of organisations and individuals occupying different positions across the clean-energy financing ecosystem gave the Lounge a broader function than conventional conference matchmaking.
It created a space where developers could explore potential financing pathways, investors could better understand project opportunities, and catalytic-finance connectors could identify opportunities for linking projects to appropriate funding instruments and strategic partners.
This was particularly significant in the context of the conference’s wider emphasis on de-risking Nigeria’s clean-energy market.
While the main conference panels examined policy, financing, technology, market development and energy access, the Investment Lounge provided a parallel mechanism for translating those conversations into potential commercial relationships.
The model reflects an increasingly important principle for Nigeria’s clean-energy transition: policy dialogue and investment mobilisation must happen together.
A policy framework may create market certainty, but developers ultimately need capital.
A financing facility may exist, but projects need to be properly structured.
And investors may be willing to deploy capital, but they require credible projects, reliable information, appropriate risk allocation and trusted institutional connections.
The Investment Lounge was designed to bring those different requirements into the same space.
4. PROSPECT: Bringing Project Data Closer to Financiers
A particularly significant development at the conference was the focus on PROSPECT, a digital telemetry platform designed to strengthen transparency and reduce information asymmetry between clean-energy projects and financiers.
Supported by the European Union, BMZ and GET.invest, the platform tracks more than €180 million in clean-energy assets across 21 countries, using automated application programming interfaces to connect smart-meter data directly with financiers.
Its introduction into the conference’s investment and financing discussions reflected a growing recognition that data can itself become a de-risking instrument.
For lenders and investors, reliable information on project performance, energy production, revenues and asset utilisation can strengthen due diligence and improve confidence in financing decisions.
The conference therefore resolved to promote the integration of PROSPECT telemetry into the clean-energy investment ecosystem as part of a broader effort to make projects more transparent, measurable and finance-ready.
5. Raising the Quality Bar for Clean-Energy Equipment
The communiqué also addressed the quality of equipment entering Nigeria’s rapidly expanding clean-energy market.
The conference called for mandatory pre-shipment SONCAP verification, aimed at preventing the dumping of substandard components and protecting consumers, investors and legitimate industry players.
This was paired with a call for an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework for lithium-ion batteries and battery-related electronic waste.
The combination of quality assurance and end-of-life management is significant as Nigeria’s deployment of solar systems, batteries and other decentralised energy technologies expands.
A clean-energy market cannot be considered sustainable if poor-quality equipment undermines consumer confidence or if rapidly growing volumes of batteries eventually create an unmanaged waste problem.
6. Human Capital, Women and the Future Clean-Energy Workforce
The conference also placed human capital at the centre of the clean-energy transition.
The communiqué established a 30% inclusion target for women in technical and leadership positions, while proposing the scaling of paid engineering placements for up to 1,000 young women annually through a three-tier continuum of mentorship, internship and leadership development.
The resolution recognises a reality that is often overlooked in energy-transition discussions: infrastructure cannot scale without people capable of designing, financing, installing, operating, maintaining and regulating it.
For the clean-energy industry, expanding participation by women is therefore not simply a social objective.
It is also a workforce and capacity-development strategy.
The proposed continuum seeks to create a pathway from early-career exposure to practical technical experience and ultimately leadership.
7. Energy Efficiency Elevated as the “First Fuel”
The conference also placed energy efficiency firmly within the clean-energy investment agenda.
Participants affirmed energy efficiency as the “first fuel”, reflecting the principle that the cheapest unit of energy is often the unit that does not need to be generated or consumed.
The communiqué called for stronger enforcement of Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) and proposed the establishment of an Energy Efficiency Trust Fund capable of subsidising up to 50% of capital expenditure for industrial energy-efficiency retrofits.
The proposal could have significant implications for industries facing high energy costs.
Rather than focusing exclusively on adding new generation capacity, energy-efficiency investments can reduce demand, lower operating costs and improve the competitiveness of businesses while reducing pressure on the wider electricity system.
8. Strengthening the Alliance’s Institutional Architecture
The conference also provided an opportunity for the REEEA-Alliance to report on its institutional development.
The Alliance presented its three-year stewardship report, highlighting its expansion from five to seven constituent associations and the activation of 11 Standing Working Committees.
The development signals an effort to strengthen the institutional architecture through which renewable-energy and energy-efficiency stakeholders can coordinate policy advocacy, industry development and engagement with government and development partners.
The conference also recognised institutions and stakeholders through its annual awards, honouring organisations and individuals including the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Sterling Bank, GIZ and Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa for contributions to industry development and transformative impact.
From Conference Dialogue to Deal-Making
The significance of the conference’s approach lies in its attempt to connect the different parts of the clean-energy ecosystem rather than treating them as isolated issues.
The 12-point Action Communiqué addresses market structure and fiscal incentives.
The financing discussions address the cost and availability of capital.
The PROSPECT platform addresses project data and transparency.
The Investment Lounge addresses the connection between projects and potential capital providers.
The quality-control resolutions address market integrity.
The gender and workforce provisions address human capacity.
And the energy-efficiency proposals address the demand side of the energy equation.
Together, they reflect a broader proposition: Nigeria’s clean-energy transition requires an ecosystem in which policy, capital, technology, people and markets move in the same direction.
That proposition was particularly visible in the Investment Lounge, where business-matching took place concurrently with the formal panel discussions.
Rather than waiting for the conference to end before stakeholders began exploring commercial relationships, the Lounge provided a parallel transaction-oriented environment where developers, financiers, catalytic funding connectors and institutional partners could engage around opportunities.
For an industry in which promising projects can remain stalled because of financing constraints, inadequate risk mitigation or weak connections to capital, this type of direct engagement could become an important mechanism for accelerating deployment.
Beyond the Communiqué: Implementation Is the Test
The adoption of the 12-point communiqué marks an important milestone, but its real significance will ultimately be determined by implementation.
Nigeria’s clean-energy market does not require another collection of policy declarations without execution.
It requires projects that can attract capital.
It requires financing structures that reflect the realities of local developers.
It requires reliable data that allows investors and lenders to assess performance.
It requires quality standards that protect the market.
It requires women and young professionals equipped to participate in the technical workforce.
And it requires businesses, governments, financiers and development partners to work within a coordinated framework.
The REEEA-Alliance conference attempted to bring those elements into a single platform.
By combining policy dialogue with investment matchmaking, digital telemetry, financing discussions, market reforms, quality enforcement, energy efficiency and human-capital development, the conference sought to move the industry conversation beyond “what Nigeria should do” towards “what stakeholders can execute.”
A New Proposition for Nigeria’s Clean-Energy Market
The most important outcome of the conference may therefore be less about the number of people who attended and more about the architecture it sought to establish.
The 12-point Action Communiqué brings together issues that are often treated separately—electricity-market reform, fiscal incentives, project finance, digital data, equipment quality, investment matchmaking, gender inclusion, workforce development and energy efficiency.
Together, they represent a proposition that Nigeria’s clean-energy transition must become increasingly bankable, measurable, inclusive and execution-focused.
The challenge now is to convert the resolutions into timelines, institutional responsibilities, investment pipelines and measurable outcomes.
The REEEAA is positioned to prove that the conference is more than another industry gathering.
It is set to become a reference point for a more coordinated phase of Nigeria’s clean-energy market; one in which policy creates certainty, finance follows bankable projects, technology improves transparency, local capacity expands, and clean-energy investment translates into tangible improvements in access, productivity and economic opportunity.
For the REEEA-Alliance, the message from the conference is consequently both ambitious and practical:
“Nigeria’s clean-energy market does not simply need more capital. It needs the conditions that allow capital to move confidently into projects, communities and businesses at scale.”
The 12-point communiqué is the Alliance’s proposed framework for beginning that process.
The post REEEA-Alliance, Stakeholders Adopt Landmark 12-Point Action Communiqué to De-Risk Nigeria’s Clean Energy Market first appeared on Energy News Stream.
The 4th Namibia Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition (NOGC) 2026 has come to a close in Windhoek with a clear message: Namibia’s petroleum opportunity must translate into jobs, skills, businesses, investment and long-term national value.
Held under the theme “From Decision to Dividend: Making Namibia’s Oil Work for Namibians,” the three-day conference brought together more than 1,500 delegates, over 120 speakers and more than 70 exhibitors from Namibia and around the world.
Hosted by the Economic Association of Namibia (EAN) in partnership with the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) and the Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB), with strategic partners the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR) and SNC Incorporated, the conference was officially endorsed by the Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy.
Discussions during the 3-day gathering reflected Namibia’s transition from exploration towards development, with local content, enterprise participation, skills, infrastructure, financing and investment emerging as central priorities.
Speaking on behalf of Her Excellency Hon. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, President of the Republic of Namibia, Her Excellency Lucia Witbooi, Vice President of the Republic of Namibia, said the country’s resources would only become a national success if they delivered tangible benefits.
“Discovery is not the destination. A resource beneath our waters becomes a national success only when it is responsibly developed and translated into tangible improvements in the lives of our people. It must become employment for Namibians, opportunities for our enterprises, skills for our young people, technology for our institutions, infrastructure for our economy, revenues for national development, and savings for future generations. This is why the theme of this conference is particularly appropriate,” she noted.
Minister of Industries, Mines and Energy Hon. Modestus Amutse emphasised the need to prepare the country for production and expand Namibian participation across the value chain.
“Our strategic plan for 2026 to 2030 carries one organising idea, which is to move this country from exploration to readiness, so that Namibia is ready onshore when production begins offshore. Namibia expects Namibian employment to be maximised, Namibian suppliers prioritised, skills and technology transferred, and meaningful Namibian participation, ownership and financing across the value chain. Fiscal certainty is a stable and transparent framework for petroleum revenues. Namibia does not move the goalposts. To our international partners: local content, properly done, is not a tax on your investment. An industry surrounded by capable Namibian suppliers, skilled Namibian workers and invested Namibian communities is an industry with social licence, political stability and a future measured in generations. That is what the policy builds, and my ministry will implement it with you, not against you. I am happy to state that our local banks have informed me that they are ready to receive bankable proposals from the oil and gas sector for their consideration,” he noted.
On his part, Jason Kasuto, Chairperson of the Economic Association of Namibia and Managing Director of Monasa Advisory & Associates, reinforced the focus on ensuring that Namibia’s resources deliver tangible benefits for its people.
“Oil is not the point; oil is actually the how. Our people are the why.”
The programme moved beyond policy discussion into practical participation. The Local Content Masterclass gave Namibian businesses and policymakers strategies to increase local participation, while the NIPDB Local Content Pitching Session gave entrepreneurs a platform to present their capabilities and partnership opportunities to industry leaders and investors. Supplier workshops also focused on helping domestic businesses meet international industry standards.
Closing discussions reinforced the need for collaboration between government, industry, investors and local businesses as Namibia prepares for the next phase of its petroleum development.
NOGC 2026 concluded with a renewed focus on ensuring that Namibia is not only recognised as an attractive global energy destination, but is equipped to turn its petroleum resources into sustainable prosperity for Namibians.
The post Stakeholders set new roadmap for Namibia’ oil and gas sector as NOGC 2026 wraps up first appeared on Energy News Stream.
Businesses have been urged to move beyond treating sustainability as a standalone corporate social responsibility (CSR) function and embed it into strategy, operations and decision-making as a tool for managing risk, creating business value and driving measurable impact.
Director of External Affairs & Social Performance, Seplat Energy Plc, Chioma Afe, made the call at the 2026 Sustainability Conference of the Sustainability Professionals Institute of Nigeria (SPIN), in Lagos, where sustainability professionals and stakeholders examined the capabilities required to navigate volatility and build more resilient, future-ready organisations.
Speaking on a panel themed “The Future-Ready Sustainability Professional: Skills for Navigating Volatile Times,” Afe pointed out that sustainability professionals must help organisations move away from viewing sustainability as a cost centre or a collection of social initiatives and instead position it as an integral part of business strategy.
“Sustainability should not be viewed as a cost centre. It’s a risk management tool,” she said.
Afe cited Seplat Energy’s strategic evolution, explaining that when the company reviewed its strategy in 2020–2021, sustainability was positioned as a core component of the business capable of driving returns, rather than as a side initiative focused primarily on community interventions.
According to her, meaningful integration requires sustainability to be understood across the organisation, with functions including operations, legal, procurement, finance and human resources recognising their roles in identifying and managing sustainability-related risks and contributing to organisational objectives.
She also urged sustainability professionals to develop stronger commercial awareness and understand how sustainability can contribute to solving real business problems. According to her, rather than simply implementing initiatives and reporting activities, practitioners should be able to articulate the business case, identify the risks being addressed and demonstrate the value created.
Afe further challenged professionals to broaden their understanding of impact beyond the boundaries of individual organisations and consider the wider ecosystems in which businesses operate.
“We should stop funding random acts of kindness,” she said, stressing the need for organisations to first understand the business or societal challenge they are seeking to address before committing resources.
She explained that many challenges facing individual organisations are connected to wider social, economic and environmental systems., saying that addressing them effectively therefore requires collaboration among businesses, communities, government and other stakeholders.
To determine where resources should be directed, Afe encouraged sustainability professionals to apply materiality assessments and stakeholder mapping to understand both what matters to the business and what matters to its stakeholders.
Such an approach, she said, can help organisations move away from initiatives undertaken simply because they are convenient or readily available and towards interventions that respond to clearly identified and material needs.
Afe also emphasised the importance of data and evidence in demonstrating whether sustainability interventions are achieving their intended outcomes.
“Measure what matters,” she said, urging professionals to focus on the indicators that genuinely demonstrate progress rather than attempting to measure everything.
She noted that sustainability professionals should be able to establish a clear connection between an identified challenge, the intervention designed to address it and the resulting outcome. Where an initiative cannot demonstrate meaningful impact, she said, practitioners should be willing to question whether it is delivering genuine value.
Beyond technical sustainability expertise, Afe identified commercial understanding, organisational awareness, data literacy, governance knowledge, stakeholder engagement and relationship-building as increasingly important capabilities for professionals seeking to influence senior leadership.
She also encouraged practitioners to understand Nigeria’s regulatory environment alongside global sustainability developments, while continuously mapping stakeholders, identifying emerging risks and recognising governance gaps.
On the progression of sustainability professionals into board and executive leadership positions, Afe said practitioners must demonstrate an understanding of the organisation beyond their immediate functions.
“For you to be on the board, you must understand the business in totality,” she said.
She explained that professionals who remain confined to their functional responsibilities may struggle to demonstrate how their work contributes to broader organisational performance. Building cross-functional relationships and understanding how business decisions are interconnected, she added, are therefore critical to career progression.
Afe further encouraged sustainability professionals to invest deliberately in their development, participate in professional networks and create opportunities for mentorship, sponsorship and leadership visibility.
“You must develop, you must learn, you must continue to collaborate, you must continue to give yourself the opportunity and seize the platforms where you can be seen and heard,” she said.
Afe’s remarks reinforce the evolving role of sustainability as a strategic discipline increasingly connected to business resilience, risk management, governance and long-term value creation.
For Seplat Energy, this approach reflects the company’s commitment to embedding sustainability across its business strategy and operations. Its participation in the SPIN conference further demonstrates its commitment to strengthening sustainability practice, building professional capacity and advancing conversations on responsible business and long-term value creation in Nigeria.
As organisations navigate increasingly interconnected risks and stakeholder expectations, Afe’s message reinforces the need for sustainability professionals to become strategic partners who understand business priorities, use evidence to guide decisions, engage stakeholders effectively and design interventions capable of creating meaningful impact across the wider ecosystem.
The post Chioma Afe Calls for Sustainability Beyond CSR, Positions It as Risk Management Tool first appeared on Energy News Stream.
ExxonMobil has awarded approximately $1.1Billion in pre-investment contracts for critical long-lead equipment destined for the first phase of the Rovuma…
The post ExxonMobil Awards $1.1Billion in Pre-FID Contracts for Rovuma LNG first appeared on Africa’s premier report on the oil, gas and energy landscape..
Aliko Dangote, CEO and founder of the Dangote Group and the Dangote Refinery, met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney…
The post Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote Meets with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney first appeared on Africa’s premier report on the oil, gas and energy landscape..
Rafiu Otutu, in Windhoek Equinor has signed an agreement with Harmattan Energy Limited, a Chevron subsidiary in Namibia, to acquire…
The post Equinor Joins the Namibian Rush; Partners with Chevron first appeared on Africa’s premier report on the oil, gas and energy landscape..
Panoro Energy has entered into a definitive agreement with DNO ASA to acquire the entire share capital of DNO’s wholly…
The post Panoro Energy Acquires DNO’S Share of Côte d’Ivoire’s Top Shallow Water Producing Asset first appeared on Africa’s premier report on the oil, gas and energy landscape..
