Natural gas complementary transition fuel to support renewables – Sylva

Natural gas can become important complementary transition fuel to support renewable energy in the short‐ and medium‐term transition phases thus a revaluation of the goal of zero fossil fuel as a short‐ and medium‐term solution is now required, Timipre Sylva, minister of state for Petroleum Resources has said.

The minister who was represented by Justice Derefaka, technical adviser, gas business and policy implementation, to the minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva on his behalf in Port Harcourt at the 2nd edition of the Power to Power summit which held December 6 and 7, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, organized by the Society for Petroleum Engineers (SPD) argued that it was not in Nigeria’s interest to completely discard fossil fuels.

Sylva said that in a world of surging energy demand, Nigeria will need to mobilise the nation’s entire mix of energy sources “unless we want to risk condemning millions of Nigerians to energy poverty. And in that mix, natural gas, as the cleanest burning fossil fuel, will play a prominent role in the decades to come.”

The minister acknowledged that energy consumption is changing as more emphasis is now geared towards cutting carbon emissions and safeguarding the planet for future generations. A decline in renewable energy costs has led to exponential growth of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. More attention is paid to energy efficiency and smarter and sustainable technologies are being deplored yet fossil fuel need to be play complementary roles.

“Sustainable development is a contested concept and varies with priorities attached to social, economic, and environmental goals. Hence, the one‐size‐fits‐all type of solution model needs to be widened, to speed up action in the short to medium term.

“Whilst we are looking at the transition to renewable based clean energy systems for the future, we should not forget that to get out of oil and gas, we need oil and gas,” the minister said.

Sylva said that natural gas, as the cleanest burning fossil fuel, will play a prominent role in the decades to come based on Nigeria’s rising population projected to be world’s third largest by 2050 and the abundance of natural gas in Nigeria.

“And despite the critical role of renewables, they cannot provide all the world’s energy needs. Renewables chiefly power electricity, which only meets around 20% of global energy demand,” the minister said.

Meanwhile analysts say Nigeria is not creating the needed policy environment to tap into its vast gas resources. Nigeria is yet to encourage exploration for gas through setting up competitive fiscal terms for gas. A regulated gas pricing also impedes investments and gas flaring is yet to be eradicated even though the ministry has created a plan to tackle it.

“Will we invest in our gas-based industry and future and prepare for it judiciously – in a way that avoids unnecessary interruption? I will leave you to decide that,” says the Minister. But only forward-looking regulations can attract much needed investments.

 

The organisers say the summit provides a platform for stakeholders to find solutions to the most important issues in the sector. This year’s summit was intended to deepen symbiotic engagements between the Petroleum and Energy Industries to discuss the future of Energy Utilization with a focus on solutions and technologies that will aid the transition to renewable based clean energy systems with zero carbon emissions.