LCCI, NLNG partner in carbon reduction, bioenergy solutions

As part of stakeholders’ effort to arrest a looming climate change disaster, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG), have moved to reduce nation’s carbon footprint and jump-start a vibrant bioenergy industry.

The two organisations are partnering with the winners of the Nigeria Prize for Science for 2019, Professor Meihong Wang and Dr Mathew Aneke in the new project.

The scientists work on Carbon Capture, Carbon Utilization, Biomass Gasification and Energy Storage for Power Generation was presented to industry players at the annual NLNG-LCCI Business Interactive Forum. This year’s forum was held as a webinar.

The 2019 winning work provides solutions to the capture of carbon from the atmosphere and subsequent utilisation as well as providing alternative and safe energy for cooking and electricity. The work also has the potential of reversing the trend of tree cutting for cooking and contributing positively to the roll-back of droughts as well as desertification in the country.

The Nigeria Prize for Science is a $100,000 award sponsored by NLNG, in the last 15 years, to promote innovations in science and technology that will solve age-old problems and drive development in Nigeria. The prize is awarded yearly.

In her speech, LCCI President, Mrs. Toki Mabogunje, represented by the Deputy President of the Chamber, Dr. Olawale Cole, said the handshake between the industry players and scientists is the path to generating value that can turn around the narrative on the country’s development.

She added that the webinar will help drive healthy conversations that can enable wide-scale use of the winning works, urging scientists seeking solutions to Nigeria’s problems not to relent in generating innovations that will improve the lives of Nigerians.

In her remarks, NLNG’s General Manager, External Relations and Sustainable Development, Mrs. Eyono Fatayi-Williams, said the company has got an inspiring list of winning works in different areas of science through the Nigeria Prize for Science.

Fatayi-Williams added that the force behind NLNG’s drive was its vision of “helping to build a better Nigeria.”

She remarked further that the company’s interest was to make solutions, recognised through the prize, practicable and beneficial to Nigerians.

She stated that NLNG was keen to contribute to solutions that will uplift the country beyond its developmental challenge and that will bring value to ordinary Nigerians.

She stated further that NLNG was partnering with LCCI to build an interface with industry players that will push these novel solutions beyond research to commercial success.

She called on the LCCI members to explore opportunities presented by the winning works in the Nigeria Prize for Science.

Wang is a Professor of Energy Systems at the University of Sheffield. He is a chartered engineer and has published over 180 technical papers and industrial reports. Some of his papers have won awards such as the SAGE Best Paper Prize 2014 and Ludwig Mond Prize 2014 by Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE).

Dr. Aneke, a graduate of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Sheffield with expertise in process design and modeling, power systems analysis, power generation, renewable energy, and environmental protection, amongst others.

He has authored and co-authored over 27 research works. Dr. Aneke has played various roles in major researches. He was co-investigator in the South Africa Green Fund Research and the Swiss-NRF Research Grant in 2013. He also received the “Applied Energy Most-Cited Paper” Award for two consecutive years (2016/2017 and 2017/2018).