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Nigeria’s road to net zero
16/7/2025
8 min read
Feature
Nigeria’s energy mix is currently at a crossroads, presenting both significant challenges and substantial opportunities as the nation pursues its net zero emissions target by 2050, writes former Energy Institute student intern Chiko Inneh.
Nigeria’s population of 229.5 million makes it the most populous country in Africa. Its $188.3bn GDP ranks as the fourth-largest in Africa, after South Africa, Egypt and Algeria. However, combining those two statistics paints a different picture; its per-capita GDP is one of the continent’s lowest, at $807.
Nigeria’s energy sector is heavily dominated by oil and gas… and not only. In 2022, that sector accounted for about 10% of the nation’s entire economy. This dependence creates a challenge. Economically, it opens the country to the volatility of global oil prices, where fluctuations can have impacts on revenue streams and overall economic stability.
According to the Energy Institute’s latest Statistical Review of World Energy, Nigerian oil production has fallen over the past decade, from 2.27mn to 1.64mn b/d. Over the same period, natural gas production has expanded. It grew from 40bn m3 in 2014 to a high of 52.4bn m3 in 2021, before dropping to 46.8bn m3 in 2024. However, during the period LNG exports fell. They grew from 26.1bn m3 in 2014 to a peak of 28.8bn m3 in 2019, before dropping to 18.4bn m3 in 2024.