The Federal Government has assured that it is ready to provide additional funding to the Africa Energy Bank to guarantee its launch, following delays by some African nations in meeting their capital subscription commitments.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, made the disclosure on Tuesday at the 2026 Sub-Saharan Africa International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference in Lagos.
Despite Nigeria already contributing 70 per cent of the bank’s capital, Lokpobiri said the country is prepared to cover any remaining funding gap should other African countries fail to fulfil their obligations.
In 2024, President Bola Tinubu approved a $100 million investment for a Class A share in the bank, positioning Nigeria to host the multilateral $5 billion Africa Energy Bank, which will finance energy projects across the continent.
“Africa’s problem, largely, is access to capital. That’s why the African Petroleum Producers Organisation came up with the idea of an African energy bank,” Lokpobiri said.
He added that Nigeria has earned the trust of other African nations to host the bank’s headquarters and has fulfilled all responsibilities as the host country. The headquarters was formally handed over to the African Petroleum Producers Organisation and Afrexim Bank in Abuja last week.
