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NSIA, Vitol to commit $50m to climate solutions in Nigeria

World celebrates rainforest day

The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and Vitol announced on Monday a partnership to enable them cut down greenhouse gas emissions in Nigeria through investment in projects that address critical environmental and climate threats.

Under the agreement, the NSIA and Vitol are looking at establishing a joint venture which will then invest in a range of high integrity, socially impactful, carbon avoidance and removals projects.

The two institutions have agreed to make an initial commitment of $50 million to this new venture, the NSIA, which manages Nigeria’s Sovereign Wealth Fund, said.

The plan is to invest exclusively in projects in Nigeria, partnering with local non-governmental organisations that have a proven track record of successfully delivering high-quality projects that combine carbon offsetting with social benefits that contribute to UN Sustainable Development Goals.

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“We intend to fund projects in clean cooking, reforestation as well as gas flare reduction,” Uche Orji, chief executive officer, NSIA told BusinessDay. “It is anticipated that the new venture will be open to new investors as the partners develop the project pipeline.”

BusinessDay also understands that the initiative will seek to mobilise voluntary market carbon capital from the partners and potential third parties in a small step toward a more equitable energy transition for Africa.

According to Orji, the NSIA is committed to playing a leading role in advancing climate solutions that help to lower Nigeria’s carbon emission as an integral part of its ESG strategy.

He said: “NSIA expects that the partnership with Vitol will be key to establishing and accelerating carbon reduction and avoidance in Nigeria by providing an enabling platform to trade carbon credits.

“We are therefore very pleased to be working with Vitol to channel our investments in sustainable projects to deliver emission-reduction results as well as significant socio-economic outcomes that will be of benefit to Nigerians.”

Vitol is a leader in the energy sector with a presence across the spectrum: from oil through to power, renewables and carbon. It trades 7.6 million barrels per day of crude oil and products, and charters circa 6,200 ship voyages every year.

Michael Curran, head of environmental products at Vitol, said they are delighted to be partnering with NSIA to support Nigeria’s national efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through projects that address critical environmental and climate threats.

He said: “The projects will have a clear focus on delivering social benefits, alongside the highest standards of carbon offsetting. Vitol has been investing in high-quality carbon mitigating projects globally for over a decade, with a recent focus on sub-Saharan Africa.

“Used appropriately as part of a comprehensive corporate energy transition strategy, offsetting will play a key role in meeting the Paris Climate Agreement objectives and contribute towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”