By Régis Hounkpè

600 million people in Sub Saharan Africa remained without electricity in 2024: 47% of the region’s population. Behind that figure lies a vast development agenda, but also one of the most significant economic opportunities of our century.

Africa’s energy story is too often told in the language of deficit. That is understandable, but incomplete. The continent needs power for homes, factories, farms, ports, schools and hospitals. It also has the resources, the talent and the markets to become a central actor in the international energy system.

Nigeria sits at the heart of this equation. Nigeria holds an estimated 211.1 trillion cubic feet of proved natural gas reserves. Properly mobilised, this can become a continental instrument.

The same can be said of emerging gas producers from Senegal and Mauritania to Mozambique and Tanzania. These countries are reshaping the global energy conversation. In a period marked by supply disruption, rising demand and sharper concern over affordability, African production can help stabilise markets while supporting domestic transformation.

LNG has a particular role to play. For African countries, it offers a practical route to diversify the energy mix, reduce exposure to imported refined fuels and build greater energy sovereignty. It can also serve as a bridge between immediate reliability and longer-term industrial growth; no credible energy strategy can ignore the urgency of keeping the lights on today.

Yet resources alone do not build power systems. Pipelines, ports, processing facilities, storage terminals, grids and interconnectors will decide whether African energy becomes a shared engine of growth or remains trapped in isolated pockets of abundance. A gas molecule in one country can support power generation in another. A stronger grid in one region can help stabilise supply across borders. Africa also has a rare advantage: in many places, the energy map is still being drawn, allowing governments to learn from older systems elsewhere and build infrastructure that connects countries, strengthens security of supply and creates an ecosystem of shared prosperity.

The same applies to export capacity. Africa should not be content with shipping raw value outward while importing the benefits back at a premium. More processing, more African-owned logistics, more local engineering and more regional financing must be part of the next phase.

There are encouraging signs. Nigeria’s local content framework has helped raise local content in key oil and gas industry segments from less than 5 per cent to over 54 per cent. Indigenous operators now account for more than 30 per cent of national oil output. This marks a significant shift from an older model in which external corporations dominated much of the value chain.

Ownership changes the conversation. It strengthens autonomy. It keeps skills closer to home. It allows communities to see energy as part of national development and, increasingly, as part of Africa’s international economic role.

The national progress now needs to be matched by international coordination. If African countries are to turn resource ownership into long term energy influence, ministers, regulators, financiers, and companies must be present in the same rooms, shaping the terms of investment and partnership together.

Gastech, the global LNG and energy industry gathering taking place in Bangkok from 14 to 17 September 2026, offers one such opportunity. The event will convene more than 50,000 energy professionals, over 1,000 exhibitors and 1,000 speakers from more than 150 countries. Confirmed African governmental speakers already include ministers from Nigeria, Egypt, Libya and Senegal, while public and private sector players from across the continent will have a chance to advance partnerships on LNG, infrastructure and investment.

For Africa, the value of such platforms lies in the ability to connect every layer of the energy system. High-level policymakers can coordinate with project developers, infrastructure partners, financiers and technology providers, helping turn national ambitions into concrete progress. The continent should arrive as a producer, partner and strategic voice. Nigeria, in particular, has the reserves, experience and commercial ecosystem to lead that conversation.

Africa’s energy future carries both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is clear: the continent must unlock substantially more supply to power growth, electrification and industrialisation. The opportunity is just as clear: countries such as Nigeria can become some of the world’s most important energy exporters.

The move from deficit to abundance will require investment, cooperation and confidence. But above all, it must be led by Africa itself.

Régis Hounkpè, is a lecturer and senior geopolitical analyst specializing in African political environments and economic markets. He is the Founder and Executive Director of InterGlobe Conseils.