Mr Mele Kyari, GMD of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has stated that the fight against climate change requires the global oil industry to lower its carbon footprint and sustain global energy security, adding that the NNPC is committed to reducing the adoption of low carbon technology across all its operations.
He disclosed this at the 2022 Global Energy Agenda published by the Atlantic Council.
He also warned that as energy demand grew faster than renewable energy usage, slowing down investment in hydrocarbon technology might not guarantee global energy security.
What Kyari is saying about carbon reduction
Kyari stated that the impact of global warming had triggered the best of human innovation, especially in the fields of energy and sustainability.
“The call to end the use of fossil fuels in order to reduce global CO2 emission and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 is becoming lower,” he said.
He stated the oil industry was required to play more than one important role, which included lowering the global carbon footprint, sustaining global energy security and driving prosperity, especially in developing countries where population growth remained well above global average.
He added that the NNPC believed in inclusive policy actions that guaranteed access to finance and low carbon technology as a key to sustaining global energy security and equitable growth.
Kyari said that the NNPC was focusing on driving carbon neutrality through 3 main areas including, adoption of low carbon technology across its operations, deepening natural gas utilisation to reduce poverty and investment in clean energy technology.
“Slowing down investment in hydrocarbon ventures might however provide the right incentive for energy transition, but cannot guarantee global energy security in near future as energy demands grow faster than renewable energy maturation.
“We (NNPC) are leveraging the current industry dynamics to diversify and grow our portfolio in order to maintain relevance in the global energy market,” he said.
