Policy signals draw capital investment to Africa and South America
A ministerial panel gathered high level officials from Africa and South America to shed light on the public and private finance needed to encourage investment in oil and gas resources, as well as renewable power in their countries.
They offered insights on government strategies that act as powerful instruments to attract investment to build and expand national energy industries.
African exporters
His Excellency Dr. Khalifa Adbulsadek, Minister of Oil & Gas at the Government of National Unity, Libya, spoke about policies to advance Libya’s ambition to increase oil production to 2 million barrels per day over the next five years.
“As you know, Libya has a huge portfolio of brownfields,” he said. “Those fields that we discovered back in late 50s, early 60s have huge remaining reserves.”
“So that's the first focus, then we are considering development of green fields that are overdue for development for various reasons.”
Olubukola Arowolo Verheijen, Special Adviser on Energy to the President of Nigeria, expressed similar growth ambitions for her country, and described the policy hurdles.
“We took a step back to make sure that we had a stable environment, a clear investment framework, and the things that investors want to see to deploy capital into our market,” she said.
“It took about 20 years to pass the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which meant that a lot of capital found home elsewhere.”
“We had to then make sure that after the PIA was passed, we also accelerated additional incentives that made us a lot more competitive, and we improved the clarity of the investment framework, and the policy framework.”
Starting small
Honourable Cheikh Niane, Vice Minister of Energy, Petroleum & Mines in Senegal, acknowledged that his country, producing approximately 100,000 barrels per day, is a relatively small player in comparison to Libya and Nigeria, but he underscored the seriousness of his country to grow its oil and gas resources.
“In Senegal, we started the production of oil one year ago, and this year we are starting to export energy, 2.5 million tons per year of energy export,” he said.
“We did a huge job in changing our frameworks, with a new oil and gas law in 2019. “But it was linked to the geopolitical situation, which has had a huge impact on investment. “So this is where we also have to focus, to have a clear view of what is happening.”
Stability and support
Jimena Latorre, Minister of Energy & Environment, Government of Mendoza in Argentina, described the enormous energy resources of her region, including a major gas field and solar power field.
“Mendoza has a competitive advantage due to its fiscal stability and supportive local regulations, which complement the national regimen,” she said.
The region offers tax exemptions for renewable energy projects, while it supports the enormous Vaca Muerta oil and gas formation, and pursues the development of copper mining in the region.
