In Demonstration Of Nigeria’s Commitment To Energy Transition, NNPC Ltd Joins UN Global Compact Network

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has become a member of the United Nations Global Compact effectively signaling its commitment to the global push for a cleaner source of energy.

The event where the NNPC became a member took place after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s session during the Global Africa Business Initiative (GABI) on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

The NNPCL is a dynamic global energy company with businesses and operations across the entire spectrum of the energy value chain.

Climate change and energy poverty represent critical challenges to Nigeria’s environmental and socio-economic stability.

As a developing nation with a rapidly growing youth population, Nigeria is particularly susceptible to the consequences of climate change.

There has been a widespread acknowledgment that the Federal Government must take swift and strategic measures to both mitigate the severe repercussions of climate change and promote sustainable economic growth.

Speaking on the development, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPC Limited, Mr Mele Kyari said as the largest oil company in Africa with footprints across the globe, the move aligns with the sustainable development goals of the United Nations focused on creating clean energy.

He said, “What this means is that NNPCL is committed to moving towards much more clean energy, making all the requirements of the global compact, which includes governance certainty, governance transparency, including fight against corruption across all of the boundary chain, and of course ultimately to supplement energy by providing them energy, which is what we require.

“Clearly the sustainable part is to see when can we get to net zero. Our country is committed to net zero by 2060, so that means you must take certain practical steps, including using transition fuel in our country.”

He said being a country will huge gas resources, Nigeria has adopted gas as its transition fuel.

Kyari added, “It’s a major gas country, so we use gas as a transition fuel going forward so that we reduce our footprints, and of course more importantly today, the majority of people don’t have access to clean energy, or even for cooking.

“Therefore, you have to do that, so careful substitution with gas as a source of energy as you progress, and then you find alternative multi-cleaner use of liquids that we produce in our country.”

Nigeria enacted the Climate Change Act in 2021 to provide a functional framework for mainstream climate change management at a national level and in 2022, launched its Energy Transition Plan (ETP), designed to simultaneously tackle the challenges of energy poverty and the climate change crisis.

With Nigeria being one of the largest producers of crude oil in Africa, it is believed that a transition from an energy system driven by fossil fuels to one based on renewable energy will have far reaching positive impact, serving as a catalyst for sustainability in-country, on the continent and world at large.

Kyari said the NNPC Limited’s move to become a participant of the UN Global Compact is a pivotal step in fostering a culture of ethical business conduct, environmental stewardship, and social responsibility.

With NNPC Limited as a participant of the UN Global Compact, the UN Global Compact Network Nigeria believes it is worthy to commemorate this milestone with a signing ceremony and showcase Nigeria’s commitment to a just transition.