By Bisi Bamishe
The Rural Electrification Agency (REA), would be leading conversations on Nigeria’s renewable energy strategy which is a component of broader energy transition strategy of the federal government
The 2026 Oriental News national conference with the theme, “Carbon Capture: Accelerating Decarbonization Initiatives In Nigeria’s Extractive Industry Through Broad Regulatory Reforms” is bringing together top energy companies and experts as well as key government agencies to exchange innovative ideas on how to reduce carbon emissions in the energy sector and engage in knowledge sharing along individual industry perspectives.
The conference scheduled to hold on the 23, of July 2026, at Radisson Blu, Ikeja Lagos, also has a Sub Theme: Addressing Finance Challenges, Investment Strategies, Operational Sustainability and Climate Change Management.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO) of the REA, Abba Abubakar Aliyu, would engage critical stakeholders,including energy expert, industry leaders and financial institutions on the agency’s efforts in minimizing carbon emissions through expanded renewable energy development.
Nigeria drives its renewable energy transition through the Energy Transition Plan (ETP), which aims for net-zero emissions by 2060.
The country prioritizes decentralised solar power, green manufacturing, and massive multilateral investments to combat grid fragility and end its heavy reliance on petrol and diesel generators.
Launched to achieve net-zero, the ETP leverages a \(\$410\) billion investment strategy focused on expanding grid capacity, promoting clean cooking, and modernizing the power sector.
The Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-Up (DARES) is a major \(\$750\) million World Bank-backed facility aimed at providing electricity to over 17.5 million unserved Nigerians via solar home systems and mini-grids.
The REA, is rapidly deploying community-based solar mini-grids to bypass fragile national transmission lines and directly empower rural businesses and healthcare centers, and this would be the focus of Aliyu’s key presentations at the conference.
Nigeria is prioritizing local manufacturing of solar panels, inverters, and standalone renewable systems to create jobs and build domestic supply chains.
The government offers policy incentives—such as tax holidays for independent power producers and specialized feed-in tariffs—to attract private capital into the renewable sector.
The global oil and gas industry operators are working assiduously to reduce emissions and Nigeria is also facing similar pressures to bring down the scale of emissions across all critical sectors of the economy.
Every year Oriental News Nigeria, a leading news Online platform provides opportunity for discussions among critical stakeholders in Nigeria’s energy, finance and industrial sector of the economy to discuss regulatory issues, investment opportunities with the aim to support both private and public led initiatives to improve economic growth and development.
Now in its 5th year, the 2026 conference is seeking to promote environmental sustainability by addressing actions and challenges facing operators in the extractive industry, particularly in the country’s oil and gas, petrochemicals and manufacturing sectors.
The conference would convene operators in the oil and gas industry to exchange ideas and decarbonisation solutions that align with operational needs.
The summit will focus on the industry challenges of harmonising environmental commitments with business performance.
Growing demands for sustainability have long underscored the need for the oil and gas sector to reduce its environmental impact. Now, with the emergence of innovative solutions, the industry is entering a transformative phase — reimagining the future of energy.
One of the key highlights of the summit is the presentation of case-studies from major industry players who have either achieved significant progress in their decarbonisation goals or are well on the path to success.
It brings all sides of the business together: vendors, oil and gas producers and suppliers. It gives an opportunity to hear different points of view on the same issue and find what suits the company best and it will offer unique opportunity to stay ahead of decarbonisation trends, connect with industry leaders and turn sustainability goals into operational strategies.
The topic seeks to interrogate regulatory frameworks, decarbonisation pathways initiated by operators, and financing gaps that has led to slow progress towards promoting meeting the country’s zero emissions targets.
The conference aims to foster dialogue on energy transition with the opening ceremony to be hosted with key presentations by the guest speaker and keynote speaker who will address the theme of the conference.
There will be panel discussions by stakeholders from broad spectrum of petroleum industry, manufacturing, financial sector, regulatory agencies among others.
This aspect of the discussion will include thematic dialogues, policy exchanges, and joint segments, potentially incorporating hybrid or digital elements for broader access and sustainability.
