• Shell canvasses right policies for Nigeria’s sustainable energy future
• Says over 90% of contracts executed locally
As global pressure mounts for an accelerated transition to renewable energy, industry leaders have called for a pragmatic and phased approach to Africa’s energy transition, cautioning against the premature abandonment of fossil fuels without first ensuring broad access to reliable and affordable electricity across the continent.
This position emerged during a high-level forum hosted by TotalEnergies in Lagos, which brought together policymakers, energy executives, and young professionals to deliberate on the future of oil and gas in Africa. The forum featured a robust panel session on energy security, local content development, and the evolving dynamics of global energy markets.
Speakers at the event acknowledged that while renewable energy remains central to long-term sustainability goals, Africa must retain fossil fuels, particularly gas, in its near-term energy mix to drive industrialisation, create employment opportunities, and maintain economic stability.
Meanwhile, the Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo), Ronald Adams, has said Nigeria’s quest for a sustainable energy future must be anchored on the adoption of the right policies, fit-for-purpose technologies, and a resilient supply chain supported by skilled human capital.
Speaking during a panel session at the just concluded Nigeria Annual International Conference and Exhibition (NAICE) of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) in Lagos, Adams said that as part of efforts to deepen local participation in the oil and gas sector, he revealed that SNEPCo has ensured that over 90 per cent of the contract value in its operations is executed by Nigerian companies, a move aimed at strengthening indigenous capacity in goods and service delivery.
He, however, acknowledged that significant work still needs to be done to improve local capabilities, pointing out that end-to-end industrial capability is limited in Nigeria, a gap that often forces project scopes to be split between local and foreign firms, leading to increased costs and project delays.
To bridge these challenges, Adams called for increased investment in local fabrication and manufacturing hubs, regional certification systems, and better access to finance for domestic vendors. According to him, “A lot more needs to be done to scale up local competence.”
Adams said the nation’s energy transition journey will only deliver the desired results if the country can harness its potential to deliver affordable, secure, and increasingly cleaner energy.
He noted: “The question is no longer whether Nigeria will play a key role in the future of energy, but how quickly and effectively we can harness our potential,” stressing that policy, technology, and human capacity must align for any meaningful progress to be made.
The SNEPCo boss explained that while the right policies would provide a solid framework for growth, deploying technology “will help unlock more with less,” while a robust supply chain and local human resource capacity would serve as critical drivers of industrial growth and long-term energy security.
