The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank),has released 700 million Eurobond to African continent for the development of oil and gas sector.
This is as the Federal Government has called on African countries with fossil fuels to look inward for alternative funding for hydrocarbon energy, rather than relying on western countries.
Speaking on Monday in Lagos at the African Local Content Investment Forum with the theme: ‘Pan-African Strategy Towards Sustainable Funding Of Africa Oil And Gas Projects, Dr. Benedict Oramah, the Managing Director, Afriximbank said that the 700 million Eurobond was released to the continent last week.
Oramah observed that Africa has about 125 billion proven crude oil reserves and the hundreds of trillions of proven gas reserves, but regretted that over 600 million people of the continent’s 1.3 billion people are still without access to energy.
Oramah reiterated that the Afreximbank remained keen to supporting the oil and gas industry on the continent in order to achieving its balance.
Also, Mr. Timipre Sylva, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, charged African countries with fossil fuels to look inward for alternative funding for hydrocarbon energy.
Sylva who was represented at the occasion by Dr. Nasir Gwarzo, the Permanent Secretary, Petroleum Resources noted that Africa’s energy transition should be anchored on maximising fossil fuels utilisation and investment in renewable energy projects.
Sylva explained that Africa’s energy demand in 2035 would be 40 per cent higher than it is today, compared to the projected 10 per cent higher for global energy demand.
This growth, he said would be driven by industrialisation, population and expansion in economic activities.
He added: “A holistic outlook of the continent’s oil and gas infrastructure requirements include upstream field development projects, pipelines, depots, terminals, refineries, petrochemical plants, and oil & gas research & development and training institutions all of which require huge funding.
“Countries that have promoted regional development projects have been constrained by funding. Examples include the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP) the first transnational gas pipeline in the West African sub-region with the potential of creating 80,000 jobs and reducing greenhouse emissions by approximately 100 million tons. The Trans-Sahara Gas Pipeline (TSGP) is another project that if well-funded will serve as corridor for the movement of natural gas through Algeria to the EU member countries.
“The local content programme for Africa can only be impactful in our various economies if there is pipeline of projects that will sustain the utilisation of capacities and capabilities developed or being developed in the industry.”
Also commenting, Engr. Simbi Wabote, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) noted that some African countries have made in-roads in securing funding and investment for the development of hydrocarbon projects with strategic partnerships like China and India.
He also noted that other African countries are doing their bit to develop infrastructure and processing plants for the hydrocarbon value chain, declared that there was need to do more.
He mentioned the ongoing construction of Dangote Refinery, which is about 650,000 barrel per day.
He expressed that this investment represents a major testament of the emerging crop of bold and audacious African businessmen positioning themselves and the continent on the map of the required energy mix for mankind.
He explained that AFREXIM Bank recently signed a $1.04 billion facility with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Ltd to finance the exploration of petroleum during the second intra-Africa trade fair, a few days after the completion of COP-26 event in Glasgow.
Wabote noted that for a bank that disbursed more than $42 billion between 2016 and 2020 in support of African enterprises, there was no doubt that AFREXIM bank was an institution of note in consideration of the quest for funding hydrocarbon development projects in Africa.
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