The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) has said that it is adopting three strategies to achieve a carbon-neutral economy in order to contribute to global efforts to reduce global warming and other effects of climate change in the country.
The company is also adopting low-carbon technology across its operation, and hope to deepen natural gas utilization to reduce energy poverty and invest in clean energy.
Dropping the hint during the weekend in Abuja, the group managing director of the NNPC, Mele Kyari, said that his company’s strategy for achieving carbon neutrality is centered on three principles: adoption of low carbon technology across our operations, deepening natural gas utilization to reduce energy poverty, and investment in clean energy technology and products.
“We believe these principles are most likely to support a smoother transition to a carbon-neutral economy without compromising access to the cheap and readily available energy resources that will be required to address energy poverty and support country specific development priorities.
“Slowing down investment in hydrocarbon ventures may provide the right incentive for the energy transition, but it cannot guarantee global energy security in the near future, especially as energy demands grow faster than renewable energy maturation,” the NNPC boss said.
According to Kyari, the world needs to adopt a more inclusive consensus that would consider complementaries and trade-offs between and within policies and policy objectives.
“As a commercially driven entity, we are leveraging the current industry dynamics to diversify and grow our portfolio in order to maintain relevance in the global energy market.
“Additionally, we are reassessing the brown and green assets for our carbon budget and environmental credentials as part of our transition to an energy company of global excellence,” he said.
He said that climate change was increasingly becoming a major concern for everyone because its impact on the environment was seen every day; saying that outdoor temperatures and sea levels were rising while water bodies were drying up with the frequency of major weather events increasing.
Kyari lamented that “This worrisome impact of global warming has, over the years, triggered the best of human innovation, especially in the fields of energy and sustainability.”
According to him, “World leaders, leading institutions, scientific communities, businesses, and organizations are leading global solidarity in action against climate change and its impact on life on earth.
“The call to end the use of fossil fuels in order to reduce global carbon dioxide emissions and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 is becoming louder, and the coalition is big, but greater synergy is required to achieve sustainable outcomes.”
Kyari noted that to achieve a carbon-neutral economy, the global oil industry must play important roles that will lower the global carbon foot-print, sustain global energy security, and drive prosperity, especially in developing countries where population growth remained well above global average.
By Sunday Elom
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