SAIPEC 2026: NNPC reaffirms commitment to indigenous capacity

• NCDMB urges sustainable African energy future

Nigeria National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited yesterday said it is focused on ensuring that Africa’s energy narrative is defined by creation, responsibility and opportunity, with indigenous participation positioned at the heart of sustainable growth.

The Group Managing Director, NNPC, Bayo Ojulari, made this known while delivering his speech at the 10th Sub-Saharan Africa International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (SAIPEC 2026), in Lagos. He reaffirmed the company’s commitment to strengthening partnerships, building indigenous capacity and promoting gas as a key driver of Africa’s industrialisation. The conference has as its theme: “A Decade of Driving Africa’s Energy Future.”

According to him, NNPC Ltd remains committed to playing its part in strengthening partnerships, supporting indigenous capacity, and advancing gas as a catalyst for industrialisation.

He noted that discussions on gas development, investment resilience, local content inclusion, and youth development directly addressed Africa’s energy realities.

“These are not abstract debates; they reflect confidence in Nigeria’s capability, belief in Africa’s potential and ambition without apology. It should speak to an Africa that is no longer a content follower, but a real and reliable leader,” he said, adding that Africa must move beyond being a follower in global energy conversations and assert itself as a credible leader.

Ojulari also hailed the organisers of the conference for their vision and consistency, noting that the conference had evolved within a decade into one of Africa’s most respected energy platforms.

“In just 10 years, SAIPEC has grown beyond the confines of a conference; it has become a powerful statement of African capability and clear proof that our continent can convene, collaborate, and compete at the highest global standards,” he said.

The NNPC boss said the firm was proud to be a strategic partner of SAIPEC, describing the partnership as a reflection of a shared conviction that Africa’s energy future must be shaped by Africans. “This partnership is anchored on strong institutions, credible policies, capable indigenous companies, and collaborations that deliver real value,” he said.

In similar vein, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Felix Ogbe, called for stronger collaboration among African nations to secure a sustainable and competitive energy future for the continent.

Ogbe, in a keynote address titled: “Africa’s Local Content Collaboration Strategy,” said the continent’s local content aspirations can only be realised through collective and coordinated action.

Represented by the Director of Corporate Services, NCDMB, Dr Abdulmalik Halilu, he noted that insights from previous SAIPEC engagements, including the 2025 edition, show that local content development across the continent remains a work in progress.

He stressed that collaboration, rather than isolated national efforts, must remain the cornerstone of Africa’s energy strategies.

According to him, effective collaboration among governments provides the foundation for successful local content implementation, enabling the consolidation of gains and acceleration of progress across the energy value chain.

Ogbe highlighted Nigeria’s deliberate and systematic approach to local content development, which began with increasing indigenous participation, followed by targeted capacity building, and now strengthened by policies and guidelines that prohibit the transfer of certification to intermediaries.

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He explained that the new framework ensures that the Board engages only competent and capable contractors, making technical capacity a critical requirement in tender evaluations.

At the continental level, Ogbe said Africa’s local content drive must be anchored on regulatory collaboration and alignment. He urged African countries to collectively leverage the Brazzaville Accord to promote regulatory harmonisation, sectoral cooperation, and an Afro-centric approach to local content development.

By aligning regulatory frameworks and reducing operational bottlenecks, he said African energy projects would become more competitive, economically viable, and better positioned to attract global financing.

Ogbe described the establishment of the Africa Energy Bank by the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO), in partnership with Afreximbank, as a major strategic milestone. He said the Bank is expected to mobilise capital for African energy projects, provide access to more affordable financing, strengthen industry players, and enhance capacity across the continent.

He therefore called on governments, regulators, investors, and industry leaders to actively support the operationalisation and success of the Africa Energy Bank as a catalyst for sustainable growth in Africa’s energy sector.

Ogbe concluded that Africa’s energy future depends on collaboration and a shared vision, noting that only through cross-border and cross-sector partnerships can the continent build robust, inclusive, and sustainable local content strategies capable of driving Africa’s energy sector to greater heights in a rapidly evolving global landscape.

In his welcome address, the Chairman of the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria (PETAN), Wole Ogunsanya, said notwithstanding the evolving global energy transition, Africa’s most urgent challenge remained energy access, affordability, and reliability, as more than 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity, while industrial growth continues to be constrained by persistent energy deficits.

“For Africa, energy transition is not about abandoning hydrocarbons. It is about leveraging our resources responsibly to drive development, while gradually integrating cleaner and renewable solutions,” Ogunsanya said.

According to him, the rise of indigenous capacity across Africa’s energy value chain is one of the most profound achievements of the past decade, referencing Nigeria’s success with deliberate local content policies.

“In Nigeria, indigenous companies now lead in drilling and well services, engineering, fabrication and construction, as well as asset acquisition and field development,” Ogunsanya said.

He said his Association members have evolved from service providers into strategic partners, delivering complex energy projects to international standards.

 “A decade ago, we set out to drive Africa’s energy future. Today, we are not at the end of that journey, but at the beginning of a far more ambitious chapter. It was envisioned as a movement to amplify African capabilities, encourage collaboration and redefine Africa’s role in the global energy landscape,” he said.

The PETAN Chairman further assured that the association will continue to accelerate gas development and infrastructure expansion, deepen local content utilisation, create jobs, transfer skills, and position Africa as a competitive and reliable energy destination.