The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Gbenga Komolafe, says the rising investment in renewable and clean energy technologies and infrastructure has pushed overall energy investment above $3tn for the first time in 2024.

Komolafe stated this at the licensing round commercial bid conference held in Lagos yesterday.

According to him, global investment in clean energy is now reported to be about twice as much as the investment in fossil fuels.

“Rising investments in clean energy technologies and infrastructure have pushed overall energy investment above $3tn for the first time in 2024,” he stated.

However, he said the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, the International Energy Administration, and other energy outlets have maintained that fossil fuels would continue to dominate the global energy mix with projections that oil and gas will remain the backbone of the global energy mix in the medium to long term, driven by population growth, urbanisation, and economic expansion in developing economies.

The projections, he said, indicated that oil and gas will still account for over half of the global energy supply by 2050.

“Also emphasising the continuing role of natural gas as a transition fuel, particularly in a region where energy access and affordability remain a priority, the above projections and narratives affirm the enduring importance of oil and gas amidst advocacy for an accelerated shift to renewable energy resources.

In the face of these projections, Komolafe stressed that Nigeria must strategically position itself to annex its vast resources amid poor domestic and global energy demands.

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