Nigerian delegations led by the Honorable Minister of State for Petroleum Oil, Senator Heineken, have taken the nation’s ambitious energy transformation agenda of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to the 9th Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Vienna, Austria.
The 9th OPEC International Seminar was held on July 9-10, 2025, at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria. The seminar’s theme is “Charting Pathways Together: The Future of Global Energy”, according to OPEC. The event also showcased the launch of the 19th edition of OPEC’s World Oil Outlook (WOO) 2025, which attracted energy stakeholders around the globe to chart a path towards low-carbon energy utilization.
Nigeria’s energy industry is currently on a progressive transformation to solving the problem of shortage of crude to its domestic refineries owing to the emergent of 650 million barrels per day Dangote refinery and OPEC production quota for the international export buyers which in turn stands as good source foreign exchange earnings and also in meeting its Joint Venture partners financial commitment.
Energy poverty in the black populated African region has taken a prominent toll as millions of Nigerians, especially in the rural areas, still don’t have access to electricity and clean cooking gas. Nigeria, with over 200 trillion standard cubic feet of natural gas reserves, must harness these abundant natural resources to solve its energy problems, and a more direct foreign investment portfolio is needed to actualize these ambitious energy goals.
In tackling the prevailing energy deficiency in the region with Nigeria as a point of reference, global energy investment stakeholders should soft pedal on their stringent stance of fossil fuel project financing and net zero roadmap, and allow the region to develop its renewable energy pathway Nigerian delegations led by the Honorable Minister of State for Petroleum, Senator Heineken, have taken the nation’s ambitious energy transformation agenda of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to the 9th Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)in Vienna, Austria.
The 9th OPEC International Seminar was held on July 9-10, 2025, at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria. The seminar’s theme is “Charting Pathways Together: The Future of Global Energy”, according to OPEC. The event also showcased the launch of the 19th edition of OPEC’s World Oil Outlook (WOO) 2025, which attracted energy stakeholders around the globe to chart a path towards low-carbon energy utilization.
Nigeria’s energy industry is currently on a progressive transformation to solving the problem of shortage of crude to its domestic refineries owing to the emergent of 650 million barrels per day Dangote refinery and OPEC production quota for the international export buyers which in turn stands as good source foreign exchange earnings and also in meeting its Joint Venture partners financial commitment.
Energy poverty in the black populated African region has taken a prominent toll as millions of Nigerians, especially in the rural areas, still don’t have access to electricity and clean cooking gas. Nigeria, with over 200 trillion standard cubic feet of natural gas reserves, must harness these abundant natural resources to solve its energy problems, and a more direct foreign investment portfolio is needed to actualize these ambitious energy goals.
In tackling the prevailing energy deficiency in the region with Nigeria as a point of reference, global energy investment stakeholders should soft pedal on their stringent stance of fossil fuel project financing and net zero roadmap, and allow the region to develop its renewable energy pathway.
The 9th Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has served as an enabling platform for the Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Oil, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC Ltd), Engr. Bayo Ojulari showcases the nation’s prolific and attractive oil and gas investment opportunities available in her upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, respectively, to potential global investors for the grab.
Speaking on Ministerial Panel Session 1 on the topic: Oil Markets: Energy Security, Growth and Prosperity, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri stated that for Africa to be part of the global journey toward energy security, the continent must be afforded the same investment opportunities that have been extended to other regions of the world.
“In my remarks, I highlighted the critical role of energy availability and affordability in driving economic growth and shared prosperity. Nigeria, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has undertaken significant reforms and reviewed its legal framework, now offering a stable and attractive environment for investment in the energy sector.
“We have substantial capacity and we are positioning ourselves to meet both domestic energy needs and the wider demands of the West African region, which depends heavily on the Nigerian market. However, increased investment across the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors is crucial,” He said.
“By enabling greater access to investment in Africa’s energy sector, the international community can play an important role in unlocking the continent’s vast energy potential. Such investments would not only support the development of critical infrastructure and local capacity but also help bridge the energy access gap that continues to hinder economic growth across much of the region,” He added.
Engr. Ojulari in his congressional address reaffirmed that Nigeria’s oil and gas industry is going through an ambitious transformational journey, which he attributed to the post Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which he asserted has brought stabilization to the sector and as a result it has subsequently solidified an existing partnership and attracted new investors.
“The undertaking of passing such a law will be difficult anywhere in the world and will take time to implement, especially as National Oil Companies. It takes the industry as our regulatory body to achieve the greatness that we have. The PIA gives us the roadmap and allows us to monitor our progress. “We have a roadmap to be listed by 2028,” Ojulari asserted.
The nation’s oil company boss stated that the recent appointment of seasoned technocrats as board members of NNPC Ltd, those whose experiences have cut across far and wide global energy space, is a testament that the transformative plan to reposition the corporation to be one of the global national oil companies to be reckoned with.
In addressing energy poverty in Africa, Engr. Ojulari stated that there is progress in terms of enhancing and resolving the significant shortage of energy, the energy deficiency in Nigeria, and other African sub-regions.
“ We are embarking on an aggressive campaign in the country’s infrastructure building, refineries, pipelines, as well as gas-based industry to ensure we solve our energy deficiency problem, and your support will be instrumental for these opportunities and also present significant investment opportunities for us all, “ he said.
In the concluding part of his speech, Engr. Ojulari emphasizes that the present ease of doing business policies deployed in the Nigerian oil and gas industry have dramatically improved investment and have further increased oil production.
“We have an ambition to build our oil production to at least 3 million barrels per day in 2030 and gas production to at least 12 Bcf per day, and that capacity we will pursue, and of course, in collaboration and leveraging our relationship at the OPEC as we progress. The optionality to unlock these resources is what we are determined to do, and we have a clear roadmap to achieve that, “he concluded.
at their own pace.
The 9th Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has served as an enabling platform for the Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Oil, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC Ltd), Engr. Bayo Ojulari showcases the nation’s prolific and attractive oil and gas investment opportunities available in her upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, respectively, to potential global investors for the grab.
Speaking on Ministerial Panel Session 1 on the topic: Oil Markets: Energy Security, Growth and Prosperity, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri stated that for Africa to be part of the global journey toward energy security, the continent must be afforded the same investment opportunities that have been extended to other regions of the world. According to his X handle remarks, the honorable minister said:
“In my remarks, I highlighted the critical role of energy availability and affordability in driving economic growth and shared prosperity. Nigeria, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has undertaken significant reforms and reviewed its legal framework, now offering a stable and attractive environment for investment in the energy sector.
“We have substantial capacity and we are positioning ourselves to meet both domestic energy needs and the wider demands of the West African region, which depends heavily on the Nigerian market. However, increased investment across the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors is crucial,” He said.
“By enabling greater access to investment in Africa’s energy sector, the international community can play an important role in unlocking the continent’s vast energy potential. Such investments would not only support the development of critical infrastructure and local capacity but also help bridge the energy access gap that continues to hinder economic growth across much of the region,” He added.
Engr. Ojulari in his congressional address reaffirmed that Nigeria’s oil and gas industry is going through an ambitious transformational journey, which he attributed to the post Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which he asserted has brought stabilization to the sector and as a result it has subsequently solidified an existing partnership and attracted new investors.
“The undertaking of passing such a law will be difficult anywhere in the world and will take time to implement, especially as National Oil Companies. It takes the industry as our regulatory body to achieve the greatness that we have. The PIA gives us the roadmap and allows us to monitor our progress. “We have a roadmap to be listed by 2028,” Ojulari asserted.
The nation’s oil company boss stated that the recent appointment of seasoned technocrats as board members of NNPC Ltd, those whose experiences have cut across far and wide global energy space, is a testament that the transformative plan to reposition the corporation to be one of the global national oil companies to be reckoned with.
In addressing energy poverty in Africa, Engr. Ojulari stated that there is progress in terms of enhancing and resolving the significant shortage of energy, the energy deficiency in Nigeria, and other African sub-regions.
“ We are embarking on an aggressive campaign in the country’s infrastructure building, refineries, pipelines, as well as gas-based industry to ensure we solve our energy deficiency problem, and your support will be instrumental for these opportunities and also present significant investment opportunities for us all, “ he said.
