Africa sees natural gas as a promising direction of cooperation with Russian energy companies in order to become an energy-self-sufficient continent.
The Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber NJ Ayuk made the comment during the second Russia-Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum, that took place in the Russian city of St. Petersburg.
“I think gas is going to be something that is so promising, huge amounts of gas reserves that have been discovered and that need to be brought into development especially in Nigeria and Congo,” Ayuk said when asked about potential vectors of energy cooperation with Russia.
The African Energy Chamber’s chief also said that Russian energy companies such as Gazprom had “great skills in gas capture,” which turns gas into electricity and petrochemicals such as ammonia.
“[We are] looking at gas, developing gas, not just for export but for domestic use, making energy poverty history and driving a gas-based economy to really improve people’s lives,” Ayuk said on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa Summit in St. Petersburg.
He went on to say that Russia is a 100% energy-self-sufficient country that should be able to assist Africa in capacity building, technology transfer, and finding solutions to Africa’s energy crisis.
“We will continue to meet with Russian companies, encourage them to continue to invest in Africa and to partner with Africans on projects that would alleviate energy poverty,” Ayuk added.
He noted that 600 million Africans do not have access to electricity and 900 million Africans do not have access to clean cooking technologies, most of them women. He also expressed confidence that Africa could become energy sustainable.
