Barkindo Kicks against Calls for Stoppage of Investment in Oil Industry

Emmanuel Addeh

Secretary General of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Dr Sanusi Barkindo, has kicked against the calls for a halt to investment in the oil and gas sector on the back of global push towards net-zero.

Speaking at the Nigeria Energy Forum at the CERAWeek 2022 on: “Oil & Gas Investments: The Future of Fossil Fuels amid the Quest for Decarbonisation,” the OPEC helmsman stated that if adhered to, such requests will further distort the world’s energy supply system. 

Barkindo stated that the discourse around energy, climate, and sustainable development continues to be extremely emotive with the voices of oil and gas industry operators being intentionally excluded. 

“This is wrong.  Rational discussions need to be based on facts, hard data and science, and include all stakeholders. Additionally, we are witnessing investors, environmental lobbyists and even some corporate boards pressuring oil and gas companies and governments to pursue increasingly radical policies and initiatives that could, in the end, be more disruptive, than productive, for the global energy industry. 

“There have recently even been calls for investments in new oil and gas projects to be discontinued, particularly in the context of discussions around net-zero targets.  This is again wrong,” he argued.

He noted that while OPEC understands the move by many developed nations to set net-zero emissions targets, it is important to appreciate the massive challenges for developing countries to reach such levels, given that many of them are acutely focused on priorities such as energy access, living wages, and supplying basic necessities.  

According to him,  access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy, remains a right for all and not a privilege of the few, as enshrined by the UN in Sustainable Development Goal 7. 

“The unfortunate reality for developing countries is that a staggering 759 million people worldwide did not have access to electricity in 2019, with around 79 per cent of them located in Africa.  

“Moreover, there were roughly 2.6 billion people or 34 per cent of the global population who did not have access to clean cooking fuels and technologies. This includes a massive 70 per cent of Africans, exposing them to high levels of household air pollution.

“ From the perspective of Nigeria alone, in 2019, only 55 per cent of the population had access to electricity and only 13 per cent had access to clean cooking. 

“The energy poverty numbers for Africa are stark.  And to add in one further number to discussions on the energy transition, Africa accounts for less than 3 per cent of global emissions,” Barkindo noted.

At approximately 125 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and 16 trillion standard cubic metres of natural gas on the continent, the OPEC chief explained that Africa’s resources remain largely unexplored, adding that the capacities and national circumstances of developing countries must be taken into account in all actions.  On this score he maintained that while there has been a lot of talk about finance issues from developed countries, but so far a disappointing amount of pledges has been realised.