Oyedele Philemon Etpcompete Essay Entry 2023

DELIVERING A BALANCED ENERGY
TRANSITION IN THE POWER SECTOR: MY

CHOICES
“Twenty-five years ago, people could be excused for not knowing much, or doing much, about
climate change. Today we have no excuse. No more can it be dismissed as science fiction; we
are already feeling the effects.” ~ Desmond Tutu
Back in 2007, popular Nigerian singer-songwriter, professionally known as Așa, released an

album titled “Fire on the mountain”. Sixteen years later, with recent happenings of drought,
desertification, flooding, rise in sea level, gully erosion, biodiversity loss in Nigeria, coupled
with the attendant socioeconomic effects, as far as Nigeria’s environment is concerned, it is
impossible to agree less with Așa’s 2007 album title that provided we continue in this way, there
is indeed fire on the mountain.
With closer inspection, it appears that the energy sector is the largest single source of greenhouse
gas emissions majorly responsible for this crisis at hand. It is therefore a matter of urgent
necessity to have a worldwide transition from fossil-based systems as the major means of energy
production and consumption to renewable and sustainable energy sources for limiting emissions
and assuaging the unfavorable effects of climate change.
Commendably, the Nigerian government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari,
has made Nigeria’s commitment to net-zero emissions by 2060 known at COP26 and through
the global launch of Nigeria’s Energy Transition Plan on August 24, 2022. However, as any
logical mind would foresee, this unfolding scenario vividly describes what can be rightly termed
as a dilemma.
Ours is a country that is highly dependent on oil and gas, with the sector contributing more than
80% of the nation’s revenue and foreign exchange earnings and responsible for the employment
of many Nigerians. Moving from the economic impacts, the current energy poverty is another
area of concern. An average Nigerian consumes between 140-360 kWh of electricity yearly in
sharp contrast to the proposed minimum of 1000 kWh per capita. Similarly, 92 million Nigerians
lack access to electricity while 175 million lack access to clean cooking solutions.
Put simply, we are faced with the trilemma of ensuring environmental sustainability, economic
prosperity, and energy accessibility. Picking the power sector as a point of interest, were I to be a
policy maker, the following are the decisions I would make:
1. SHORT-TERM ACTION: With hands firm on ensuring sustainability, I firmly agree

with the African proverb which goes thus; “Do not empty the water pot just because you
hear rain is coming; the clouds do not always mean rain”. This adage seeks to elicit the
crucial need of prudence and wisdom in managing old and new resources. Our country is
mightily endowed with about 206 trillion standard cubic feet of gas (tscf) proven
deposits, dismissing these vast resources in light of the global energy transition without
careful analysis may not be the best thing to do.
The IRENA 2023 global report reveals that fossil fuels would still be relevant in terms of
usage by around 16% by 2045. Engr. Simbi Wabote, NCDMB Executive Secretary, also
maintains that the present energy transition would result into a redistribution of energy
mix, as opposed to an outright dismissal of one energy type for the other.
In view of all these, building on the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas Policy which
aims to harness the nation’s huge gas reserves, address energy poverty using gas as an
enabler and ultimately drive economic growth between 2021 and 2030. I would rapidly
maximize the production of natural gas because it is the most environmentally
friendly fossil fuel, has the potential of assisting the integration of renewables while
being economically favorable.
Judging from the international standards of 1,000MW to one million people, Nigeria
needs to generate about 200,000MW of electricity to give her 200 million plus citizens
optimum access to electricity. In 2020, the overall production volume of natural gas in
the country amounted to about 52 billion cubic metres (1.836 billion cubic feet). Since it
takes roughly 7,600 cubic feet of natural gas to generate 1MWh of electricity, we
presently have a strong potential of generating over 241 million MWh or 27,578 MW
annually from natural gas alone (14% of required national need). By intensifying the
national production capacity and ensuring the use of Carbon Capture and Storage
technologies, Chemical Looping and High-Temperature membranes for reducing CO 2
emissions, we can get up to 70% of the required national energy need from natural gas
alone, while ensuring maximal sustainability simultaneously.
2. MEDIUM-TERM ACTION: solar energy(renewaables)
3. LONG-TERM ACTION: It is interesting to note that hydrogen can be produced from

natural gas steam reforming and used to generate electricity. While natural gas can burn
and give some amount of CO2, an unfriendly gas for the environment, Hydrogen gas
burns to give water, making it a totally clean form of energy. With the maximal
harnessing of natural gas in place in prodigious quantities, after a space of about two
years, I will begin to look into how Nigeria can shift primary focus from natural gas in
the main to Hydrogen gas

Oyedele Philemon Etpcompete Essay Entry 2023

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Oyedele Philemon Etpcompete Essay Entry 2023

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Oyedele Philemon Etpcompete Essay Entry 2023

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

DELIVERING A BALANCED ENERGY

TRANSITION IN THE POWER SECTOR: MY

Back in 2007, popular Nigerian singer-songwriter, professionally known as Așa, released an

1. SHORT-TERM ACTION: With hands firm on ensuring sustainability, I firmly agree

2. MEDIUM-TERM ACTION: solar energy(renewaables)

3. LONG-TERM ACTION: It is interesting to note that hydrogen can be produced from

You might also like