By Ono Yima
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has said Africa spends an estimated $90 billion annually importing refined petroleum products and hydrocarbon-related services, warning that the trend continues to deprive the continent of jobs, industrial growth and economic resilience.
Lokpobiri spoke in Abuja on Tuesday at the opening session of the ongoing Nigeria International Energy Summit, where he urged African governments and investors to confront energy poverty by retaining more value within the continent’s energy ecosystem.
According to him, the persistent outflow of capital is not merely a financial loss but a structural failure that undermines Africa’s development prospects. “The cost is not merely financial but structural,” the minister said, noting that the dependence on imports represents “missed opportunities for value creation, job generation, and economic transformation across the continent.”
He argued that Africa’s energy challenge must be viewed through the wider lens of economic sovereignty and inclusive growth, rather than narrow debates around energy self-sufficiency.
“The core idea is this: if Africa can retain a proportion of that spending within the continent through localised value addition, infrastructure development and industrial participation, the economic impact would be transformative,” Lokpobiri said.
He explained that retaining hydrocarbon value within Africa would create fiscal space for governments to invest in critical sectors such as healthcare, education, infrastructure, security and technology, while strengthening local manufacturing and service capacity.
On energy financing, Lokpobiri highlighted the completion of the African Energy Bank, describing it as a landmark achievement for the continent. He disclosed that the bank’s headquarters in Abuja has been completed and formally handed over to the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO) and Afreximbank on February 2, 2026.
According to the minister, the bank is now positioned for full operational take-off, with its formal launch scheduled for June 2026. He said the institution is expected to mobilise long-term capital for oil, gas and energy infrastructure projects across Africa at a time when access to international financing has become increasingly restrictive.
“If we do not mobilise the appropriate resources to solve the energy problems in Africa, the misery will increase as population grows,” Lokpobiri warned, stressing that the bank represents an African-led solution to Africa’s energy financing challenges.
He added that Nigeria had fulfilled all its obligations as host country, noting that the successful completion and handover of the project underscored the country’s commitment to regional energy leadership.
Addressing the global energy transition debate, the minister dismissed narratives suggesting that oil and gas are being rapidly phased out. Citing recent outlooks by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), he said fossil fuels would remain dominant in the global energy mix for the foreseeable future.
“No country in the world is abandoning oil and gas, and Nigeria will not either,” he said, emphasising that Africa’s priority must be balancing energy availability, accessibility and affordability, even as it gradually adopts cleaner technologies.
He described the summit as a call to action, urging African leaders to move beyond policy declarations and decisively tackle energy poverty, while positioning the continent as a competitive destination for energy investment.
With the African Energy Bank now completed and set for launch, Lokpobiri said Africa must shift from rhetoric to execution—leveraging its vast hydrocarbon resources not as a liability in the global transition, but as a foundation for industrial growth, energy security and shared prosperity.