African downstream players to discuss supply security at ARDA confab
Sopuruchi Onwuka
The African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA) has declared the need to balance competing challenges of Africa’s downstream energy transition, security and scarce financing.
The urgent needs, according to the association would form the topics for discussions at upcoming conference in Orlando, Florida, United States.
President of ARDA, Marieme Ndoye Decreane, stated that action is needed now for Africa to “meet our short-term energy security objectives, banish fuel poverty, and achieve our COP targets.”
She noted the threat to African fuel supply from rising demand in Europe, explaining that the Russia-Ukraine crisis has Europe competing for the products currently being imported to Africa.
Marieme Ndoye Decreane who is also Managing Director of the SAR refinery in Dakar, Senegal, made it clear that African nations cannot prevaricate if they own the responsibility to provide citizens energy supply security.
Executive Secretary of ARDA, Anibor Kragha, is equally very clear on the major competing challenges to the African Downstream sector as it struggles to balance its near-term cleaner fuel needs with the longer-term energy transition initiatives.
He says the Ukraine war prioritized short-term security of petroleum product supplies for African countries.
“These competing challenges are not only difficult to reconcile in terms of their objectives but also, critically, in competing for the same pool of financing.
“With banks under increasing pressure from ESG activists to limit investments in fossil fuel projects -even as steps are being taken towards achieving a cleaner world while removing energy poverty -there is a major risk that Africa will experience significant shortages of the cleaner energy required to enable the continent’s transition to a low-carbon economy.”
In advance of the conference, Mme Ndoye Decreane has also highlighted the conflicting fortunes of the African downstream sector:
“In Senegal, we are investing in our refinery, backed by our country’s President, and in Nigeria the gigantic Dangote refinery is nearing completion backed by private financing. Nigeria is also rehabilitating their NNPC refineries, and other countries such as Algeria, Egypt, Angola, Cote d’Ivoire, the Republic of Congo, Uganda and Cameroun have ongoing projects. However, in Zambia and in South Africa, refineries have announced closure.
“At the same time, investment in improving infrastructure and logistic efficiency, critical to our continent’s economic progress has stalled, as have cleaner fuel and vehicles initiatives.”
