Read more
Unlocking Africa’s oil and gas potential is now imperative against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and the resulting crude, diesel, and gas supply crunch. This has rendered European dependence on Russian energy untenable, creating a major opportunity for Africa to position itself as a crucial option to increase the supply to the global energy markets. However, significant challenges remain for the continent’s hydrocarbon producers to suddenly ramp up their production due to infrastructure, finance, and technology deficits. Countries with major LNG resources, such as Nigeria, Angola, Libya, and Algeria, suffer from limited and underdeveloped pipeline networks, refineries, jetties, terminals, and ports. Additionally, incentivizing foreign investment is often problematized by a host of risk factors, including political instability, local insecurity issues and financial institutions shifting investments from fossil fuels to renewables. Finally, securing the latest technology to facilitate local content development has proven cost prohibitive given the reliance on foreign intellectual property and the continual brain drain of key local human capital. All the above issues will be discussed at the 8th Africa Petroleum Congress and Exhibition (CAPE VIII) taking place from 16-19 May 2022 in Luanda, Angola. The congress is organized by the African Petroleum Producers Organization (APPO), the government of the Republic of Angola (for the first time), and AME Trade Ltd. The three-day event will be centered around the theme of “Energy Transition: Challenges and Opportunities in the African Oil and Gas Industry,” and assemble experts from the national, regional, and international energy and oil and gas industries to deliberate the challenges and opportunities of the energy transition and the future of the oil and gas industry in Africa. CAPE VIII will unfold against the recession of the global pandemic that exacerbated record production declines across African hydrocarbon producing countries from 2020 to 2021. The annus horribilis was compounded by under-investment in exploration activities, leaving several of the continent’s biggest energy players struggling to cope with the post-lockdown surge in demand for hydrocarbons. Fortunately, APPO’s ambition to establish the continent as an energy hub regained significant headwind with a stellar upstream development outlook for 2022 and beyond. The congress will be the ideal platform for Africa’s leading oil and gas producers to confront the foregoing challenges and engender solutions to maximize its oil and gas resources. Amid the drive by developed economies towards decarbonization and net-zero policies, attending energy stakeholders will have the opportunity to reinforce the case for regional integrated supply chains and pooling resources to leverage the catalytic power of hydrocarbons in a sustainable manner. Supported by countless multinationals across the energy value chain and national oil companies, CAPE VIII will feature illuminating insight from a range of illustrious keynote speakers, who will mold the future landscape of energy in Africa and beyond. Keynote speakers at the conference will include: H.E. Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources of Angola, President of APPO H.E. Mahamane Sani Mahamadou Issoufou, Minister of Petroleum, Energy and Renewable Energy Republic of Niger H.E. Samson Gwede Mantashe, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, South Africa H.E. Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Minister of Energy, Ghana, H.E. Thomas Camara, Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy, Ivory Coast Dr. Omar Farouk Ibrahim, Secretary General, African Petroleum Producers Association (APPO) Ms. Cany Jobe, Director of Exploration and Production , Gambia National Petroleum Corporation Mr. Edson R Dos Santosi, CEO, SOMOIL Dr. Ibrahim Mamane, Directeur Général, SONIDEP Mr. Osam Iyahen , Vice President, Oil & Gas, Africa Finance Corporation Mr. Bráulio de Brito, Chairman, Angola O&G Service Companies Association (AECIPA) Mr. Zakaria Dosso, Managing Director, AEICORP Mr. Matthieu Milandri, Head of Upstream Finance, Trafigura Mr. Yann Pierre Albert Livulibutt Yangari, Independent Consultant Mr. Dr. Babafemi Oyewole, the CEO of Energy Synergy Partners Tim Dixon, Director and General Manager, IEA Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme Confirmed National Oil Companies at CAPE VIII include. SONANGOL, Angola SNH, Cameroon SHT, Chad Petroci, Cote d’Ivoire SNPC, Congo NNPC, Nigeria Sonagol, Angola GE Petrol, Equatorial Guinea Sonagas, Equatorial Guinea CAPE VIII is sponsored by the continent’s leading oil and gas players including: SONANGOL, TOTAL ENERGIES, EXXONMOBIL, CHEVRON, EQUINOR, TRAFIGURA, SOMOIL, BRIMONT, SHEARWATER. Hawilti is a proud Communication Partner of Cape VIII.
Economic recovery, geopolitics and the overall global energy demand and supply have impacted the price of both crude oil and natural gas in the last couple of months. A reality that has gotten genuine industry players working, especially within Africa. On the continent, oil players are ramping up activity first for their domestic markets, and of course to supply international markets that are in dire need of some respite in the face of the uncertainty and chaos caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In this context, agitation and worry will not solve the problems, only strategic business decisions will. It is no news that several oil and gas asset owners in Africa are eager to get their fields to production after three to four years of stagnating performances. But while there is hydrocarbon to be produced and current prices are certainly attractive, the equation will be incomplete without the deployment of the right assets in the hands of the right team. Every day and possibly every hour, a meeting is being held across African energy capitals. In Lagos, Luanda, or Brazzaville, the focus is on investments, project execution, and asset purchase/lease. But how many of these negotiations will transition into profitable and executable ventures? This is not the time to take a chance on new market entrants, but the time to move forward with experienced and verified stakeholders who know what’s at stake and can act quickly. In Nigeria, credible intel has it that the management of West Africa Exploration & Production (WAEP) and General Hydrocarbon Limited (GHL) have formally engaged the Century Group for the development and production of their assets, all in the same week. The former has a substantial interest in OML 71/72 where lies the Kalaekule field, while the latter is the lead stakeholder in OML 120 where it is planning the redevelopment of the Oyo field. In selecting Century Group, both companies have concretely chosen to use the in-country assets of arguably the only Nigerian wholly-owned company providing FPSO solutions at the moment. The company has indeed a proven track record of safe operational framework and of over 30% cost savings even in the heart of the COVID 19 lockdown. When historic times call for urgent solutions, it turns out that local content is the most strategic, prudent, and cost-efficient decision for new hydrocarbons producers like WAEP and GHL. Over the past decade, several Nigerian energy companies have undoubtedly proven that they are energy infrastructure experts and have boosted indigenous capacity and participation. But none has really compared to the Century Group who is now well-positioned to support upcoming projects in the country. And this is just the beginning. More African names like UTM Offshore Limited or PFL Engineering Limited can now be trusted as capable partners to shape the future of the Nigerian energy industry post exit of IOCs. In the same vein, the sale of crucial energy infrastructure should be based first on the criteria of capacity to operate sustainably rather than solely on finance. Nigeria has a huge budget deficit (NGN 6.25tn, or approximately 3.39% of its GDP) and is heavily reliant on foreign debt financing. For an economy that heavily relies on oil, the current reality is a great opportunity to support recovery and help the country meet its fiscal and infrastructural obligations to the citizenry through direct earnings. Let the fields come alive and most of all, let the country’s most competent ones lead the charge.
