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AfrOil POLICY AfrOil

The Energy Transition Plan may cost $1.9 trillion to implement (Screenshot from energytransition.gov.ng)

Nigeria rolls out natural gas-based

plan for reaching net zero by 2060

NIGERIA NIGERIA’S government has rolled out a new initiative designed to promote domestic gas
plan for bringing net carbon emissions down development and utilisation.
to zero by 2060. The initiative, which calls for The gas programme has many natural syn-
using natural gas as a bridge fuel, is both ambi- ergies with the decarbonisation plan. Even so,
tious and expensive. the strategy that Nigeria is looking to follow is
Federal authorities unveiled the Energy an expensive one.
Transition Plan (ETP) at a ceremony on August Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed acknowl-
24, explaining that they hoped to accomplish edged this, saying at the ceremony on August 24
two goals – decarbonisation and eliminating that the cost of reaching net zero by 2060 was
energy poverty throughout the country. likely to reach $1.9 trillion. This figure includes
These objectives are inseparable, as Afri- $410bn beyond the country’s usual projected
can countries should not and will not pursue expenditures, equivalent to an extra $10bn per
any paths toward energy transition that do not year, she stated.
expand access to electricity, Environment Min- Nigeria will need a significant amount of
ister Mohammed Abdullahi declared at the outside assistance with respect to financing and
event. private-sector investment to reach its targets,
“As a continent, we must reject proscriptive, Ahmed added. So far, she said, the country has
one-size-fits-all solutions,” he remarked. not had enough of either to build up its domestic
Nigerian officials said at the August 24 cere- gas infrastructure to the desired levels. “Access
mony that the plan for reaching net zero by 2060 to finance remains the biggest challenge to
was designed to ensure that all of the country’s decarbonisation,” she stated.
200mn-plus citizens were supplied with electric It is not yet clear where Abuja hopes to
power by 2030. (Currently, about 90mn Nige- obtain the necessary funds. The World Bank did
rians still lack access to electricity, and many of announce at the August 24 event that it intended
those who have it are dependent on diesel-fired to invest $1.5bn in Nigeria to support clean
generators.) cooking, renewable energy and power sector
The country intends to use a mix of fossil reform projects. Likewise, the US-based solar
fuels and renewable energy to achieve the goal power company Sun Africa said it was on track
of universal power access. However, it will lean to finish negotiations with the US Export-Im-
heavily on gas, which it possesses in abundance. port Bank (Eximbank) on a $1.5bn financing
Nigeria has the largest gas resources in deal in the near future.
Africa. Its proven reserves amount to more than However, neither party divulged details
200 trillion cubic feet (5.7 trillion cubic metres), about the projects in questions nor said when
and officials in Abuja have said that the number funds might become available for ETP. Addi-
has the potential to triple with further explo- tionally, Reuters reported that Shubham Chaud-
ration of deepwater fields and other frontier huri, the World Bank’s country director for
provinces. To this end, the federal government Nigeria, had hinted that “policy and institutional
has launched a wide-ranging “Decade of Gas” reforms” might be a prerequisite for aid. ™

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 34 25•August•2022