Browsing: fossil fuels

African oil and gas industry | global energy transition

Africa’s oil and gas industry is entering a new era. The world is looking to fast-track its transition from fossil fuels. Consequently, this puts pressure on the continent’s oil and gas-producing nations. Most producing countries remain highly exposed to the global energy transition since their economies depend on oil and gas revenues. Similarly, their oil and gas reserves cost more to produce and, on average, remain more carbon-intensive than those from other regions.

The East African Crude Oil Pipeline Project (EACOP) is a crucial East African project. www.theexchange.africa

What is good for the goose must also be good for the gander. However, the EU commission has commissioned the Baltic pipe project, somewhat similar to the EACOP. The Baltic Pipe project was inaugurated on September 27, 2022, at an opening ceremony in Goleniów, Poland.

Africa remains key in Germany finding an alternative to the Russian oil and gas. www.theexchange.africa

Most African natural gas and oil sources lie in sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, which possesses around one-third of the continent’s reserves, and Tanzania, opportunities Germany should seize.

The proposed Trans-Saharan pipeline would transport gas from Nigeria to Algeria via Niger, traversing a vast, ungoverned area. The proposed pipeline, if built, will connect to the current Galsi, Medgaz, Maghreb-Europe, and Trans-Mediterranean pipelines, which supply Europe from transmission centres on Algeria’s Mediterranean coast.

The Trans-Saharan pipeline would be almost 2,500 miles long. It could send up to 30 billion cubic meters of Nigerian gas to Europe yearly, roughly two-thirds of Germany’s Russian imports in 2021. Unfortunately, the Trans-Saharan pipeline will likely take a decade or more to complete and will face several hurdles as it passes through war and insurgency-ridden areas.