Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation Nikolai Shulginov, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy of the Republic of Mozambique Carlos Zakarias, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Siberian Generating Company LLC, member of the Board of Directors of JSC SUEK Stepan Solzhenitsyn and Permanent Secretary of the Government of Political and Economic Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Gabriel Aduda
Photo: TASS
At the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum, representatives of the Russian energy sector and African countries discussed prospects for cooperation in the region as part of a panel discussion. Africa, with its growing economic and demographic potential, is one of the fastest growing markets in the world. The Russian fuel and energy complex is already implementing a number of promising projects on the African continent, which contribute to providing the population with access to modern, sustainable, reliable and inexpensive energy sources, and is ready to expand cooperation. “Russian energy companies are ready to offer African countries their skills and technologies in various fields,” Russian Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said at the session “Russia-Africa: Prospects for energy cooperation.”
The head of the Ministry of Energy noted that Africa is rich in resources: about 7% of the world’s oil, gas and coal reserves are concentrated in it, there is great hydroelectric potential. With the assistance of Russian companies, these resources can be used effectively to improve the region’s energy sustainability.
Gabriel Aduda, Permanent Secretary of the Nigerian Government for Political and Economic Affairs, in response, outlined three foundations on which mutually beneficial cooperation between Russia and Africa should be built: the use of Africa’s rich resources, the use of and the Russian experience for the effective development of the resources, and the financing of projects. At the same time, Aduda emphasized that the times when countries came to Africa, took their wealth and left, are over. Now Africa is looking for mutually beneficial cooperation, including technology transfer and investment. Nikolai Shulginov drew attention to the last comment and called on Russian companies intending to do business on the continent to take into account the state of mind of Africans to move away from the resource-based economy and create value-added products. .
Representatives of Russian energy companies, in turn, made specific proposals for the development of the sector. Tatneft Deputy General Director Nurislam Syubaev assured that the company is interested in building a long-term strategic partnership and is ready to share experiences and technologies, and is also open to oil and gas production projects. The general director of Inter RAO – Export Maxim Sergeev said that the company came to the summit with comprehensive proposals for the construction of turnkey power plants and has already signed contracts with several African countries. Stepan Solzhenitsyn, a member of the JSC SUEK board of directors, clearly showed how Russian electrical engineers are ready to save South Africa from electricity shortages. Panelists also discussed the potential for the use of gas, including LNG, as a convenient fuel for an environmentally and budget-friendly energy transition. The main projects of Russian companies in the field of green energy were also presented at the forum: Unigreen Energy is building a solar park with a capacity of 115 MW in South Africa and is ready to scale up the use of solar energy in the region.
Nikolai Shulginov emphasized that the energy transition and the achievement of carbon neutrality are important trends in the development of global energy. At the same time, according to the minister, the path towards a carbon-neutral future must be balanced, taking into account the characteristics of the economy and the capacities of the countries, and also not lead to energy insufficiency and rising energy prices. electricity. Representatives from Africa also agreed with him, who said they didn’t need clean air if they lost power as a result.
The Minister of Mining and Hydrocarbons of Equatorial Guinea, Antonio Oburu Ondo, for his part, added tension to the energy discussion and regretted, referring to his own experience, the communication problems, which he described as the main stumbling block in the development of The cooperation. He said that sometimes it is not easy to communicate with large Russian companies. According to the minister, Russian companies should more clearly represent their interests in the region.
The president of the African Chamber of Energy, Andrzej Ayuk, joined Ondo’s words, and also called for action to be taken. “Sometimes we start a conversation without fully understanding what is at stake. 600 million Africans do not have access to electricity. By 2030, the population of Africa is expected to reach 1.6 billion. If we don’t start correcting the situation, we will end up with 960 million people without access to electricity,” Ayuk said. According to him, the development of cooperation in the gas sector can solve a series of problems, but it is necessary to act now, and for this it is necessary to establish effective communication.
“We don’t just come to talk about how Russia and Africa love each other, that we are friends forever!” continued the president of the African Chamber of Energy expressively. “Africans are ready to get married, while Russia is still at the dating stage. It is time to enter into a serious relationship to build a strong alliance in love and trust and overcome energy poverty. At the end of his speech, Ayuk urged to follow the example of the Chinese, who act according to the principle “until the agreement is signed, no one leaves the room”, which somewhat alerted those present at the session, but in the designated However, the discussion participants dispersed, having previously agreed to continue the interaction.
