Dr. Blessing Enakimio is the Director of Events, Brevity Anderson, Consultants to the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Event Producers of the Nigeria International Energy Summit (N.I.E.S). In this interview, Enakimio talks about what the delegates and the public should expect from forth-coming summit. Excerpts;
N.I.E.S is in its 6th edition this year. What should the industry look forward to?
In line with this year’s theme: Global Perspectives for a Sustainable Energy Future, the Nigeria International Energy Summit gears up to be a great show, cutting across all aspects of the Energy sector; from policy to procurement and the entire Oil and Gas ecosystem. A panel of energy industry leaders and policymakers will share their thoughts on the Global Energy Mix and the Future of the Oil & Gas Industry in light of the current regulatory regime. Another panel will examine the future of offshore energy, marine and logistics. The international panel session will discuss the current state of the global energy demand and supply, in light of current realities, exploring Energy Security vs Energy Transition.
What can you say are the positive impacts of the summit for the private sector and the government?
The summit creates a high-level platform for G2G, G2B and B2B meetings. It is where policymakers meet with commercial operators alongside producers and consumers. Every part of the ecosystem is represented. This brings immense value for all involved as the right questions can be addressed to the right people, decisions can be made and agenda can be advanced. Remember, it was at previous editions of N.I.E.S that The Decade of Gas, NLNG Train 7 was launched. The USTDA/GE gas deal and the NNPC/Dangote fertilizer gas deal were also signed at the summit. The N.I.E.S is the official Federal Government’s Energy event and it has grown to become the platform for international trade and business in the Oil and Gas sector for Africa.
You added a series of training workshops in N.I.E.S 2022. Are you going to continue with those add-ons?
It is important that we keep The Education Programme going as we are educating and motivating the next generation to participate in the event in real time, thereby introducing them to the sector and creating engaging opportunities for them to be interested enough to choose a career in the sector. For instance, the agenda on Energy Transition and Climate change will impact the next generation more in the future – so we must bring them to the table now and engage them in these conversations now. We must educate them now on topics around Globalisation, as the world is forever evolving.
Did these workshops achieve the desired objective?
Yes, they did. We had more engagement on the workshop front and we have seen previous attendees gain the skills and confidence they need to progress in their careers. Many have gone forward to advance their studies, others have changed jobs and some have started their own businesses within the sector.
Beyond the plenary sessions, should we expect education-oriented sessions, especially for young people and upcoming professionals?
On Monday 17th April, we will be hosting our Annual Workforce Day. This includes Workforce Development modules and a Job Fair. On Tuesday, we will go for a Site Visit at Innvo8 Hub, which will include a tour of their facilities followed by talks. Participants will have the opportunity to engage with inspiring innovators in a very creative space.
There will be high-level session on the place of Hydrogen in Nigeria’s energy transition in the afternoon. Wednesday is our Business and Innovation Day with an interactive fire-side chat with an Abuja-based businessman, followed by pitches from our Energy Idea Lab innovators. Thursday’s sessions are very exciting as we will have our Girls in STEM roundtable, followed by our ‘Who will Power Africa’ program. The Education Programme is CPD UK certified so participants will gain a CPD certificate. For you to access the Education Programme, you will need a Visitor Pass.
The Energy idea lab made its debut during the 2022 edition. What are the lessons from the concept and how are you going to make it better this year?
We learnt so many lessons from the initial concept delivery, the major being that innovation on cleaner fuels can come in various sizes and deliverables. We are pleased to see PowerStove (who was with us last year) set up its factory in Abuja. I have arranged several business meetings for our Innovators and some have gone on to form international partnerships via our work with Innovate UK.
This year we have engaged with Energy clubs across various universities and associations running competitions in this subject, so we are looking forward to receiving even more entries from these numerous channels. The Energy Idea Lab provides a platform for Innovators with market-ready products to showcase their ideas on Cleaner Fuels. This year, we are particularly calling for female innovators to come forward.
Are there specific programmes or sessions that are gender friendly or designed for women in the industry?
We are keen on creating equity and making sure that we create engaging platforms. This year we are launching the Female-Powered Breakfast Meeting, which will take place on Tuesday 17th at ICC. The aim of the breakfast meeting is to give value to Women in the Oil, Gas, Energy and Power sector; a time for high-level networking and for empowerment. I am so pleased to have confirmed some very high-level speakers for this meeting. This year, the Female-Powered Breakfast meeting will be restricted to women with Delegate/Speaker/VIP passes only, as spaces are very limited.
We noticed that there is usually a new side event with every edition of N.I.E.S. Are we going to see new side events this year?
This year, alongside the usual side events, we have confirmed the Hydrogen Side event hosted by the German Embassy. The Decade of Gas Day hosted by the Nigeria Gas Association (NGA) and a training program run by The Energy Institute Africa.
What should we expect from Brevity Anderson and the N.I.E.S in the near future?
We are here to create a platform to showcase local content to the world; to bring the world of Energy, Oil, Gas and Power to convene in Nigeria, to do business, to create economic empowerment and to further the Energy agenda for Nigeria, its citizens and Africa at large. As Event Producers we are continuing in our pursuit for excellence. We currently have high level events across Nigeria and around the globe that we are producing for our clients. We are open for business. You can follow us on our social media platforms for our latest updates.