Nigeria’s new Minister of Power has assured that he will empower Nigerians through stable and accessible electricity. To achieve this, it is important for stakeholders across the energy value chain in Nigeria to explore the fundamental issues in the sector. The Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference provides a veritable platform to this effect which has earned it the Federal Ministry of Power’s recognition as a leading energy platform that fosters partnerships between key stakeholders in the Energy industry.
In this interview, Afrah Packirsaibo, Conference Director, Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference 2023, discusses the key focus of the flagship event and how the conferences are curated to support the country’s energy and electricity ambitions. Dipo Oladehinde brings excepts
Let’s talk about the Nigeria Energy exhibition and conference and its main objectives.
The Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference is looking to bring together key stakeholders across the value chain in Nigeria’s energy and power sector. This is the 10th edition of the event and we’re working very closely with the Federal Ministry of Power to gather stakeholders involved in the value chain including government dignitaries, gas power generation companies, independent power producers, generation, distribution and transmission companies, technology providers, financiers and agencies facilitating the development of the energy sector with the mission to find a solution to the most pertinent issues in Nigeria’s energy and power sector.
As a catalyst for change in the energy sector, what are some of the impacts this exhibition and conference has had over the years considering that this 2023 edition is the 10th anniversary?
When we consider the biggest challenges in the energy sector in Nigeria, one of them is the gap in communication among the key stakeholders. When speaking with the generation companies they give a different perspective. If you speak with the distribution companies, they have a different angle. Speaking with the transmission companies, it is different as well. So, there seems to be no synergy between the different sectors.
However, where they find unified communication is on our platform. And the little development that has happened in the power sector in West Africa has been through our events. To further buttress this, the Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference started as a platform for experts, policymakers, and industry leaders to share knowledge, insights, and research findings. The exchange of information is very critical, and our event is used to disseminate new ideas, technologies, and best practices within the energy sector.
Also, the 2023 exhibition and conference provides an opportunity to form partnerships that can lead to joint ventures, research projects, and business opportunities that contribute to the growth or development of the sector. If you look at the previous editions that we have had, we had a lot of international companies, especially manufacturers coming to the country because they know there is a lot of opportunity in the market and the biggest challenge that they have is they don’t know who to talk to. So, they use a platform like ours to connect with relevant stakeholders in the country.
What stands different in your agenda for the 2023 Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference this year in comparison to the other editions?
This year we have sort of rebranded our conference offering and are hosting the Nigeria Energy Leadership Summit. This is where all the stakeholders come together to discuss and analyse the problems while proffering solutions. For us, the conference as well as the summit is our way of giving back to the community. We want to ensure that the ideas that are discussed are sustained across the year until we are back with another edition. So, capacity building is a very big key item on our agenda. What we do is bring high-level thoughts across the value chain and facilitate extended workshops on them. These workshops are CPD-certified and open for everyone to attend. So, it is professional development, and we give that professional development for free.
We have a new Minister of Power in Nigeria. How can the Nigeria Energy event help the Honourable Minister to achieve his target?
For us, it is all about aligning with the Ministry of Power and the Minister’s objectives. So, every point of the key items that he has said that he would really work on, we are addressing all those points on our agenda at the Leadership Summit. Fostering collaboration between the public and private sectors, for example. This is where the finance question comes in and this is something we are good at. Whether that be by bringing in over 200 VIPs and investors to the show, and we generate deal flow.
In the 2022 edition of the Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference, we launched the Hosted Buyer and Investor club where we gathered high net-worth professionals with purchasing power, who want to invest in Nigeria’s energy sector. We had over 100 VIPs and investors. This year we are in our second year of growth and aim to bring in key investors in West Africa.
What is the lineup of partners for this year’s exhibition and conference?
First, our show floor is 100 percent sold out. We have a whole lineup of exhibitors including technology providers. We have metal manufacturers, we have transformer manufacturers, we have solar products, our solar manufacturers, to name but a few. But if you’re interested in learning more about sponsorship opportunities, then you can learn more about that opportunity on our website. Right now, we have our main sponsor, which is Skipper Nigeria Limited, who has been the pioneer sponsor since day one of this event. Our other sponsors include Eko and Ikeja Electricity as Host Utilities; Tetracore, Huawei, and Simba as Platinum Sponsors; Jinko Solar, Okaya, JMG, UTEC, and Ofstar as Gold Sponsors; Unisell Interlinked as Silver Conference Sponsor; and Felicity, Fronius, Lucy, Jubaili, JA Solar, Gil Siemens, Su-Kam, and Powerpro as Silver Event Sponsors.
It’s quite a bumper-pack event. We have people coming from almost 16 countries. We have four international pavilions – China, India, Turkey, and then Germany.
How can people be a part of the 2023 Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference?
The Nigeria Energy Exhibition and Conference 2023 will take place in September from the 19th to the 21st at the Landmark Event Centre in Lagos. Log on to Nigeria-energy.com to find all the information that you need to sign up.
