Tein Jack-Rich urges Africa to bankroll its own energy future

Belema Oil & Gas owner Tein Jack-Rich has urged African governments to stop treating the continent’s energy sector as a donor project and instead mobilise local policy and capital to build a self-sustaining market.

Speaking at the ENGICE 2025 forum in Abuja, the Nigerian businessman said Africa has “run out of excuses” given its scale — 30 million square kilometres, a predominantly young population and large, underused gas deposits. He argued those advantages can support industrialisation and power expansion if governments provide predictable rules and bankable projects.

Jack-Rich told delegates that Africa holds about 620 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and that Nigeria alone accounts for roughly a third of that. In his view, that makes Nigeria the natural anchor for a regional energy build-out, particularly in gas-to-power, fertiliser and industrial feedstock. He said the current pattern — exporting crude, importing refined products and relying on external funding — leaves the continent exposed to price shocks and currency pressure.

He set out a three-part plan. First, energy regulators and parliaments should deliver clear legislation that protects long-term investors and allows regional projects to proceed without years of red tape. Second, governments and national oil companies should crowd in domestic pension and sovereign wealth funds alongside international financiers. Third, states must prioritise hard infrastructure — pipelines, processing plants, export terminals and distribution — to turn resources into revenue.

Jack-Rich pointed to Belema Oil’s progress on an indigenous crude export terminal and its emphasis on local content as evidence that African operators can execute complex projects and retain more value at home. He said the next phase would require tighter coordination among producers, offtakers and investors.

Delegates in Abuja broadly accepted that transmission bottlenecks, weak regulation and fragmented markets remain the main drag on investment. Jack-Rich warned that if Africa does not move now, rising demand will be met by imports rather than local supply, entrenching dependence for another generation.

Jack-Rich, 50, is the founder of Belemaoil Producing Ltd. Belema is a Nigerian-owned independent oil and gas company headquartered in Port Harcourt, operating mainly in the Niger Delta region. It holds the operator role for Oil Mining Lease 55 (OML 55), a shallow-water block acquired from Chevron Nigeria Ltd., which comprises several oilfields such as Idama and Inda.