Uche Cecil Izuora
The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) says it is preparing its members for decarbonization of the African petroleum industry in the face of threats posed by the prevailing global campaign for energy transition.
The group declared that decarbonization of fossil fuels has become important in order to spur development of the continent with available and affordable energy.
The professional group also bewailed the massive resource waste in the Nigerian petroleum industry where it noted that poor infrastructure and low industrial capacity enabled utilization of very small fraction of produced gas.
The petroleum engineers also lamented massive drift of Africa’s skilled labour from the continent, warning that mass emigration of youths is creating deep skills shortfalls in building local capacity for domestic industrial development.
Africa Regional Director of SPE, Engr Riverson Oppong, who was in Nigeria, stated that resilient demand for oil and gas across the globe has made it crucial that technology be deployed in addressing carbon footprints of the industry, adding that the net-zero mantra in the global climate campaign currently indicate a shift of focus from energy transition to energy transformation.
Engr Riverson who featured at the debut edition of Oilda Fireside Chat platform hosted in Lagos explained that the campaign for energy transition is shifting focus from demand migration from fossil fuels to decarbonization of the industry.
The Oilda Fireside Chat is an executive media platform that provides opportunity for industry leaders to share experiences and perspectives on crucial issues in the emerging energy landscape.
Engr Oppong said, added that the campaign for energy transition is pushing production pressure in the continent as African governments hasten derivation of full economic benefits from their petroleum resources.
The situation, according to him, challenges professionals in the industry to evolve technologies and practices that align with the demands for decarbonization.
Engr Oppong who hails from Ghana said that his country is currently pursuing its clean energy programmes as a matter of cost efficiency, stressing that the petroleum industry in Ghana is conceived not to waste even a molecule of gas.
In regretting the massive waste of gas resources in Nigeria and other places in the continent, Engr Oppong called on African governments to accelerate industrialization of their economies in order to create useful utilization for the continents vast natural gas resources.
He noted that petroleum remains the most available energy to drive the industrial development of the continent.
He made it clear that green energy technology has not attained the capacity and efficiency levels required to accelerate Africa’s industrial and economic development. He added that petroleum remains the best option to achieve Africa’s energy security.
According to him, green energy sources like solar and wind are still very vulnerable to weather conditions and thus would not adequately power homes, businesses and industries.
Engr Oppong pointed out that some of the challenges to resource valorization in the continent are related to policy and commercial issues, adding that the global quest for energy transition has made it urgent for African producers to deemphasize exports and use petroleum energy to accelerate industrial development.
In response to the challenges of resolving skills flight and evolving technological innovations that would serve Africa’s energy future, Oppong stated that SPE Africa has initiated a move to set up an advisory board of experts from the continent to assist with articulating innovative strategies that would respond to the prevailing energy deficits in the continent.
Part of the objectives, he said, is to champion innovations that would decarbonize the petroleum industry in a manner that would be cost effective and economically beneficial to the industry. He noted that carbon capture and storage, for instance, is proven to be useful for reservoir engineering.
The SPE chief stated that the group’s learning programmes for African professionals have since recorded over 600 virtual events for professionals to share innovations and expertise on SPE’s platforms across the continent.
The virtual learning events, Engr Oppong stated, are separate from the group’s “Energy 4 Me” programme designed for students of colleges and universities across Africa. He also mentioned SPE’s “PetroWiki” website which, he stated, currently records over a million daily visits.
He stressed that SPE is committed to closing the skill gaps created by ageing workforce and the mass emigration of African youths.
He also blamed the mass emigration of African youths on leadership failure in the continent, stressing that labour flight has created a huge gap in the continent’s talent pool.