By Peter.
Dr. Ekperikpe Ekpo, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), insists that Nigeria and the wider African continent must chart their own energy-transition paths, grounded in local realities rather than foreign diktats.
Speaking Wednesday on a high-level panel titled “Global Shifts: Navigating an Era of Diverging Priorities” at the 2025 Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (ADIPEC), Ekpo warned against imposed decarbonisation timelines that could cripple economies.
“Nigeria and Africa will not decarbonise into poverty,” he declared. “We demand the right to harness our resources responsibly—delivering energy security, powering industry, and securing sustainable prosperity.”
He stressed that any transition must be “orderly, equitable, and balanced,” noting that the continent cannot sacrifice development on the altar of net-zero ambitions.
“In Nigeria alone, 80 million citizens lack electricity; across Africa, the figure exceeds 600 million. Millions more cook with dirty biomass. Natural gas is therefore indispensable—serving as a cleaner bridge fuel for power plants, factories, transport, and household stoves.”
Ekpo highlighted Nigeria’s parallel push into renewables where feasible, but cautioned that heavy industry and grid-scale power still depend on gas.
“We are scaling solar, wind, and other renewables to cut emissions and diversify the mix. Yet no responsible planner can pretend these sources alone can shoulder our industrial backbone today. Gas is our pragmatic partner in a just transition.”
The News Agency of Nigeria observes that the global energy sector is pivoting from breakneck speed to deliberate recalibration. Governments are juggling climate pledges with the imperatives of affordability, universal access, and supply security.
Energy chiefs are retooling strategies: accelerating renewables and grid modernisation while upgrading ageing hydrocarbon assets to guarantee reliability and attract capital. A rebound in oil and gas demand, turbulence in critical-mineral markets, and intensifying regional rivalry for energy resources are forcing nations to bolster home-grown capacity and forge pragmatic cross-border alliances.
At the heart of the debate is no longer *whether* to decarbonise, but *how* to synchronise it with economic growth, fiscal health, and human development.
