Important Takeaways on iea’s WEO2014_African Energy Outlook.

Since recently, the talks on the future of African energy have been escalating on the international stage. Different views from a variety of angles to scale have been evolving. The most comprehensive study on the future of African energy, specifically in Sub-Saharan Africa, emerged from the international energy agency, iea, in its specialized WEO2014_ African Energy Outlook report, however.

In this specialized report, iea offers the most comprehensive analytical study of energy in Africa both the current, and the outlook to 2040 in two different scenarios. Among other things, where the report strikes me most are;

1. “Sub-Saharan Africa is the epicenter of the global challenge to overcome energy poverty. More than 620 million people live without access to electricity and nearly 730 million people use hazardous, inefficient forms of cooking, a reliance which affects women and children disproportionately. But this challenge is surmountable and the benefits of success are immense”,
2. “The value of the estimated 150 thousand barrels lost to oil theft each day – amounting to more than $5 billion per year – would be sufficient to fund universal access to electricity for all Nigerians by 2030”,
3. “More than 1 trillion cubic meters of gas has been wasted through flaring over the years, a volume that – if used to provide power – would be enough to meet current sub-Saharan electricity needs for more than a decade”,
4. “Sub-Saharan Africa has more people living without access to electricity than any other world region, nearly half of the global total. It is also the only region in the world where the number of people living without electricity is increasing, as rapid population growth is outpacing the many positive efforts to provide access”,
5. “The  energy  intensity  of  the  sub-Saharan  economy  falls  by  3%  per  year  on  average  and by 2040 is 55% lower than in 2012. While this drop in energy intensity is encouraging, it is also a signal of how inefficiently energy is used at present: energy intensity levels today in sub-Saharan Africa are double the world average and triple the OECD average. By 2040, sub-Saharan  Africa  still  uses  50%  more  energy  than  the  world  average  for  each  unit  of economic output and 40% more than China, though less than India and the Middle East”, etc..

The report is an invaluable input for professionals, policy makers, governments, and all stakeholders who wish to involve themselves in to the African Energy Sector. The full report is available on   

http://www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/africa-energy-outlook.html

Let us walk the talk, together!