Nigeria’s energy transition programme although moving in the right direction but a new threat is in the offing creating disruption especially around renewable energy development.
Nigeria’s Renewable Energy Master Plan aims to increase the share of renewable energy in the total energy mix to 30 per cent by 2030, and interestingly several international organizations and development partners are supporting Nigeria in its transition towards a more sustainable energy future.
The country’s transition to renewable energy however is not without challenges. These include inadequate infrastructure, lack of technical expertise, and limited financing.
Experts have recommended that concerted efforts from the government, private sector, and international community are needed to overcome these barriers and harness the full potential of renewable energy in Nigeria.
Unfortunately a new report has indicated that climate change is posing significant threats to Nigeria’s energy market, impacting the country’s oil and gas sector, disrupting energy supply, and exacerbating energy access issues.
Though these challenges also present opportunities for Nigeria to diversify its energy market and transition towards more sustainable and resilient energy sources. With the right policies and support, Nigeria can turn the climate crisis into an opportunity for sustainable development and economic growth.
Increasing effects of climate change, including erratic rainfall patterns, rising temperatures, and extreme weather events, are posing substantial threats to the Nigeria’s energy production and distribution.
Nigeria’s energy market is primarily dependent on fossil fuels, with oil and gas accounting for about 35 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). However, climate change is threatening the sustainability of these resources.
Rising temperatures and fluctuating rainfall patterns are causing significant changes in the Niger Delta region, where the majority of Nigeria’s oil and gas reserves are located.
These changes are leading to increased evaporation rates, which in turn result in lower water levels that can hinder oil and gas extraction processes.
Climate change, a global concern that continues to challenge nations worldwide, is significantly impacting Nigeria’s energy market.
Nigeria’s energy sector is a critical component of its overall economic stability and growth.
Moreover, extreme weather events such as floods and droughts, which are becoming more frequent and intense due to climate change, are causing substantial damage to Nigeria’s energy infrastructure.
Flooding, for instance, often leads to the shutdown of oil and gas facilities, causing significant production losses.
On the other hand, drought conditions can severely impact hydroelectric power generation, which constitutes a significant portion of Nigeria’s electricity supply.
Climate change is also exacerbating Nigeria’s energy access issues,says a report.
Despite being Africa’s largest oil producer, Nigeria struggles with providing reliable electricity to its population.
Erratic weather patterns and extreme events disrupt the energy supply, leaving many Nigerians without access to electricity for extended periods. This lack of reliable energy access hampers economic activities and exacerbates poverty levels, particularly in rural areas.
However, the challenges posed by climate change also present opportunities for Nigeria to diversify its energy market and shift towards more sustainable and resilient energy sources. Renewable energy, particularly solar and wind power, offers a viable solution to the country’s energy challenges. These resources are abundant in Nigeria and are less vulnerable to climate change impacts compared to fossil fuels and hydroelectric power.
The federal government has recognised the potential of renewable energy and has taken steps to promote its development.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, recognising this challenge is developing key strategic pathways to sustain and increase its aggressive gas development and gas transportation projects to achieve affordable and clean energy.
The drive is in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), Goal No. 7, as well as part of the company’s strategic energy plan towards finding a balance for the energy trilemma.
Speaking at the opening of the Nigeria Annual International Conference & Exhibition NAICE 2023, themed: “Balancing Energy Accessibility, Affordability, and Sustainability: Strategic Options for Africa” in Lagos yesterday, hosted by the Society of Petroleum Engineers, SPE, Nigeria Council, the Group Chief executive officer of the company Mele Kyari, said that African countries are grappling with strategies of balancing energy availability with meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals No 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and No 13 (climate actions).
Kyari, noted that in Nigeria there is the need to create energy accessibility to ensure all citizens can access reliable, modern energy, irrespective of their location or socio-economic status. In addition he said that energy affordability entails ensuring energy and its infrastructure are priced so they can be obtained without financial strain by Africans, while energy sustainability implies that our energy use does not harm the local environment or exhaust resources, affecting future generations.
“This is indeed a trilemma situation and the delicate balance between political will, technological innovation, effective market mechanisms, well-crafted policy interventions, and capacity building.
It also demands a multi-stakeholder approach, one that involves government, the private sector, civil society, host community and the public at large,” he said.
Kyari, further noted that the Nigerian energy industry has witnessed strategic transformation which has given birth to a viable industry legislation, the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, and a long-term gas-centered energy transition plan.
Speaking further the GCEO, added, “On the policy front, we have also seen the emergence of the incorporation of our national oil company from NNPC to NNPC Limited.
“The PIA also provides for NNPC Ltd. to engage in the renewable energy business; and the Nigerian Climate Act for mainstreaming climate change actions to achieve low emissions, inclusive green growth, and sustainable economic development.”
He also said that Nigeria is not transitioning away from the hydrocarbons as he expressed hope to see an increase in the footprint of alternative cleaner energy sources in the foreseeable future amid fossil fuel dominance.
“We use what we have to get to our desired destination. This is the reason that NNPC Limited has identified gas as a transition fuel and we are expanding our gas development and gas infrastructure across the country to increase energy accessibility.
“Today, Nigeria has about 209.5 Trillion Cubic Feet of natural gas reserves with a potential upside of up to 600 TCF, and this is an enormous resource that would drive cleaner and affordable energy vision,” he revealed.
However, he said that the other alternative energy sources such as solar and wind are faced with technology limitations and that they are still not affordable and cannot meet the high energy demands of our industries, cities and remote environments.
He, therefore, encouraged all industry stakeholders and the SPE Nigeria Council to contribute to ensuring the provision of affordable, clean, and efficient energy options to our stakeholders comprising over 200 million Nigerians, under a just and equitable transition.
This includes not only efforts in harnessing the existing energy resources but also in innovative research, development, and adoption of new and emerging technologies in the energy sector.
He said, “Our collective success will be defined by how we deliver affordable wide range of energy sources sustainably” but however observed that all of these cannot be achieved if we do not have security of our operations. We will continue to further deepen collaboration amongst all the relevant stakeholders; government security agencies, host communities and others to enhance our energy security.
This he said will require provision of adequate and timely investments to build resilient energy systems capable of delivering energy to support socio-economic development in a sustainable manner.
Can Geothermal Energy Development Change The Narrative
NATIONAL ECONOMY, understands that some countries in Africa is joining increasing number of countries that are exploring the potential to develop their geothermal energy capacity as governments look to expand their energy portfolios to include a broader range of renewable sources.
Although a report sighted by our Correspondent didn’t not list Nigeria as one of the African countries working in that direction, however, experts see geothermal energy as key to achieve energy sustainability and affordability.
As the U.K. assesses its deep geothermal potential, a major Japanese utility is betting big on geothermal energy in Germany, and Kenya is taking a regional approach to developing capacity.
Greater investment in the sector is expected to continue supporting technological breakthroughs to draw investor interest and make operations more economically viable.
Geothermal operations use steam to produce energy. This steam is derived from reservoirs of hot water, typically a few miles below the earth’s surface. The steam is used to turn a turbine, which powers a generator to produce electricity. There are three varieties of geothermal power plants, are dry steam, flash steam, and binary cycle.
Dry steam power plants use underground steam resources, piping steam from underground wells to a power plant. Flash steam is the most common form, using geothermal reservoirs of water with temperatures above 182°C.
The hot water travels through wells in the ground under its own pressure, which lessens the higher it travels to produce steam to power a turbine. Finally, binary steam power plants use the heat from hot water to boil a working fluid, typically an organic compound with a low boiling point, which is then vaporised in a heat exchanger and used to turn a turbine.
British Geological Survey (BGS) and Arup, a British engineering consultancy, recently developed a White Paper entitled’ The case for deep geothermal energy-unlocking investment at the scale in the UK, funded by the U.K. government. It aimed to assess the opportunities for constructing deep geothermal projects across the country to help diversify Britain’s renewable energy mix. To develop deep geothermal systems, companies must drill deep wells to reach higher-temperature heat sources at depths of more than 500m. There is significant potential to develop these resources in the U.K., but the complex drilling operations come at a high cost, which has so far deterred developers.
However, as technologies are improving, thanks to greater funding for research and development in the renewable energy industry, the number of areas where geothermal exploitation is economically viable is expected to increase. Most of the U.K.’s deep geothermal resources can be found in deep sedimentary basins across the country.
The White Paper recommends that the government promotes geothermal energy as one of the U.K.’s renewable energy resources to boost investor confidence and promote awareness of the energy source. The establishment of a regulatory body could also support the development of new projects, while a licensing system could help streamline future projects.
In Japan, one of the country’s biggest utility groups, Chubu Electric Power, announced plans to buy into a geothermal energy project in Germany. Chabu is purchasing a 40 per cent stake in the company, which plans to develop first-of-its-kind geothermal power and district heating project in Bavaria. It will use Eavor-Loop technology developed by Canadian start-up Eavor, transforming sub-surface heat from the Earth’s core into renewable energy, without the need to discover underground hot-water reservoirs.
Chabu already invested in Eavor itself in 2022 and hopes to promote the commercialisation of the new technology in Germany.
Meanwhile, in 2022, Kenya – which drilled its first geothermal well in the 1950s and opened its first power plant in 1981, came seventh in the world for geothermal energy production. Kenya produces around 47 percent of its energy from geothermal resources. It is one of only two African countries, alongside Ethiopia, that produces geothermal energy. The East African country hopes to assist neighbouring state’s with their geothermal ambitions, in a bid to support the regional development of clean energy resources in line with the global green transition. KenGen, the government entity that operates Kenya’s geothermal power plant, is providing technical support to other countries in the region, having already drilled multiple geothermal wells in Ethiopia and Djibouti to assess their potential.
