Managing oil price risk in a time of volatile oil prices, and helping Africa capture more value-added from its own oil industry, will be discussed at the 7th African Oil & Gas, Trade & Finance Conference, to be held in Luanda, Angola, from 20 to 23 May.
The recent uncertainty surrounding the energy industry in the Middle East has turned international attention to Africa as a source for new oil reserves and resources. And while the current oil price situation poses hardships for importers, not long ago it was exporters who were in crisis, as revenue fell far short of budget expectations. UNCTAD, one of the organizers of the conference, will present African policy makers and other participants with market-based solutions to the price volatility problem. It will also identify ways to transform much of Africa´s oil industry from its present status as a virtual enclave in which foreign companies absorb most of the gross revenue.
Also on the conference programme:
- The "government-oil company-civil society triangle". Oil companies are by now aware of the need for good community relations but still find it difficult to define what is charity and what is development. How can these firms take care of business while also enhancing local linkages?
- Gas-to-power projects. In sub-Saharan Africa, gas is mostly flared off -- and this in the midst of a serious electricity deficit in virtually all countries in the region. UNCTAD will present new financing schemes that will make it possible to invest in power plants that use this gas, contributing to a better business environment and reducing CO2 emissions in the process.
- Deepwater developments. Technological advances are making it possible to find and exploit oil reserves at previously impractical depths. Apart from providing a boom to countries like Angola and Nigeria, this is turning some countries, such as Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tomé, into new oil exporters. With what policy implications?
Other topics include US-Africa energy cooperation; LNG projects in Africa; and methods for negotiating certified emission reductions with Western companies using the "clean development mechanism" created under the Kyoto Protocol.
The conference was first organized in 1994 as part of UNCTAD´s programme on oil marketing, risk management and finance in developing countries. It serves as a forum for public and private entities to discuss the management of oil exports and imports, developments in the oil and finance markets and emerging opportunities in deregulated oil markets. The sector is crucial to Africa´s economies; inefficiencies in oil production and trade, from well to consumer, have widespread repercussions.
Luanda´s National Assembly Hall will host the conference, which is being organized by Angola´s Ministry of Petroleum; SONANGOL, the national oil company; and UNCTAD, in association with ITE Group Plc. The conference will look at the complete evolution of the oil and gas industry chain, from exploration to production, trade and financing, along with issues of local content and the link between environment and financing. It will be attended by representatives of African energy ministries, national oil companies, investors and bankers from across the continent.
Speakers include the Chairman of SONANGOL, Manuel Vicente; the CEO of Nigeria´s Atlas Petroleum, the largest privately held indigenous oil company in sub-Saharan Africa, Prince Arthur Eze; Kenya´s Minister of Roads, Public Works and Housing, Raila Odinga; and Kenneth Evans, head of ExxonMobile´s sub-Saharan operations. UNCTAD Secretary-General Rubens Ricupero will participate in the opening and closing ceremonies.
