The African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies 2024 conference officially opened with calls from the industry to ‘drill baby drill.’ Citing the need to enhance climate justice through the development of domestic energy resources, industry leaders from across the continent underscored the need to sign deals, foster partnerships and drive projects forward.

With over 600 million people living without access to electricity and 900 million people without access to clean cooking solutions, the AEW: Invest in African Energies opening ceremony – sponsored by Kosmos Energy – positioned the oil and gas industry as the catalyst for making energy poverty history.

“Our priority must continue to be to end energy poverty for all Africans as well as to create an enabling environment where the oil and gas industry can thrive,” stated Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, Minister of Mineral Resources, Petroleum and Gas, Angola. “That is also our priority in Angola. The oil and gas industry will be a fuel for socioeconomic development.”

For the African Petroleum Producers Organization (APPO), prioritizing the development of domestic markets will be integral for eliminating energy poverty. APPO Secretary General Dr. Omar Farouk Ibrahim stated that “Today, APPO is focused on creating an integrated, regional and continental energy market. To create markets, we need to create cross-border, regional and inter-regional infrastructure. One of our projects we are working on is the Central African Pipeline System, which aims to link countries through crude oil and gas pipelines.”

Adding to these remarks, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, Minister in the Presidency, Energy and Electricity, South Africa, said that “Today, Africa’s path forward lies in seizing control of our energy destiny. Our resources make us capable of not just powering our homes and industries but a new Africa. This will require unity of purpose and a collective resolve.”

Despite project progress, financing remains a central challenge to oil and gas development in Africa. According to Mary Bruce Warlick, Deputy Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, “African countries account for 20% of the world’s population but only 4% of global investment. Energy investment has been falling across the continent over the past decade. Africa needs $200 billion to achieve its climate and energy goals by 2030.”

To address these challenges, the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), in collaboration with APPO, established the Africa Energy Bank, an institution which offers financing for African oil and gas projects. According to Benedict Oramah, President & Chairman of the Board, Afreximbank, “The Africa Energy Bank is the first multilateral sector bank in Africa. We expect the bank to significantly contribute towards bridging the funding gap in the African energy sector. It will be open for business to have access to funding by February in 2025. We invite you to send in your applications to be the first transaction by the Africa Energy Bank, which will be ready in a few months’ time.”

The Africa Energy Bank supports energy companies drive projects forward. For independents such as Oando, this presents a strategic opportunity to expand their oil and gas portfolios in Africa. Wale Tinubu CON, Group Chief Executive Officer, Oando PLC, said that “The oil and gas landscape is changing. Between 2015 and 2023, there have been more than $7 billion of divested assets in Africa. In terms of M&A activity, there have been a focus on onshore and shallow water acquisitions and we have seen a rise of indigenous joint ventures and collaborations.”

Stepping into this picture, the AEW: Invest in African Energies conference convenes under a goal to make energy poverty history. By uniting the industry in Cape Town, the event fosters partnerships, promotes deal-signing while creating a collaborative environment for companies to do business in Africa’s energy sector.

“It is the time for us to tell the African story, written from Cape to Cairo and Kampala to Dakar. We will forge a path that shapes the future. We have work to do in Africa. We sign baby sign so that we can drill baby drill. Let’s not stop getting projects signed,” stated NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman, African Energy Chamber.