US-Nigeria energy dialogue focuses on methane reduction, technical support funds, others

The bilateral energy cooperation meeting between the United States and Nigeria as part of the inaugural US-Nigeria Strategic Energy Dialogue began on Wednesday in Washington DC.

The US Department of State uploaded details of the agenda of the meeting on its website. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) obtained it from the website on Thursday.

The US-Nigeria dialogue is scheduled to be held between 11 and 12 September.

The Department of State said that, through its Energy and Mineral Governance Programme (EMGP), it was committed to reducing methane emissions from Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.

According to the State Department, it will do so by renewing technical assistance to further support the Nigerian government and Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd.

It said that the US Agency for International Development (USAID), through its Power Africa initiative, was committing an additional 75-85 million dollars in technical assistance to Nigeria.

The funding, it said, was to finalise the implementing partner before the end of the 2024, and build on the successes of Power Africa’s Nigeria programmes.

“Over the next five years, it will improve the delivery and sustainability of electricity services in Nigeria while accelerating Nigeria’s power sector decarbonisation.

“Through this programme, Power Africa aims to provide more Nigerian homes, businesses, and institutions with sustainable access to electricity,” the State Department said.

According to the Department of State, other highlights include the launching of the Clean Energy Alliance of Nigeria (CLEAN).

“In support of the Clean Energy Demand Initiative, the Department of State’s Power Sector Programme (PSP) will launch a ‘clean energy buyers’ club’ in the fall of 2024.

“This is to bring together a coalition of corporate consumers, public sector leaders, and other stakeholders to champion the development and use of clean, reliable, and affordable energy resources.

“In addition, PSP will provide regulatory technical assistance to promote clean energy investment in Nigeria,” it said.

The highlights also include the more than 1.3 million dollars commitment for clean energy technical support to Nigerian partners by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Net Zero World programme.

The Department explained that, with this, DOE and its national labs would facilitate the effort toward a clean energy capacity building with Nigeria through DOE’s Net Zero World programme.

“This includes five priority workstreams on methane mitigation from oil and gas sector, tota energy sector planning and policy support.

“It also includes a scale up of energy distribution nationally, expanded power sector support, and regional energy market advancement.

“In addition, DOE appreciates Nigerian government’s participation in some of its multilateral engagements, such as the Carbon Management Challenge and the Measurement, Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MMRV) partnership,” it said.

Another highlight of the energy dialogue is that the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) will welcome the Nigeria Methane Abatement and Flare Gas Utilisation Solutions Reverse Trade Mission (RTM) in October.

The Nigerian delegation is scheduled to visit Washington, DC, Pittsburgh; the Permian Basin; and Houston during their 10-day visit from 20 to 30 October.

“The RTM will connect delegates from Nigeria’s public and private sectors with the latest U.S. technologies, services, and best practices for methane abatement and flare gas utilisation in the oil and gas sector,” it said.

The State Department further said that another highlight of the event is a capacity-building programme for US-Nigeria collaboration under the Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology (FIRST).

“A workshop and series of other capacity-building programmes will occur with Nigerian partners in the coming months under the FIRST capacity-building programme.

“FIRST support will advance Nigeria’s consideration of the potential role of advanced nuclear energy technologies in Nigeria’s clean energy mix, consistent with the highest standards of nuclear security, safety, and nonproliferation,” the State Department said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the senior delegation from the Nigerian government is led by the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo.

The Department of State is hosting the dialogue, while Geoffrey Pyatt, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Energy Resources (ENR), is leading it.

(NAN)