By Ajibola Olaide, JKNewsMedia Reporter
DEVELOPING ECONOMIES can strengthen global energy security by building resilient power systems capable of withstanding geopolitical pressures, Minister of Power Joseph Tegbe said on Tuesday.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that Tegbe made the remarks in a keynote address at the opening plenary of the Middle East Energy 2026 Leadership Summit in Dubai, where he spoke on “Energy Security and the Effect of Geopolitics” at the summit’s 50th edition.
Addressing ministers, industry leaders and international dignitaries, the minister said energy security in 2026 could no longer be defined by hydrocarbon reserves alone.
He described it as the resilience of an entire system, covering critical mineral supply chains, grid infrastructure, capital and institutions that keep energy flowing to homes, hospitals and industries under stress.
Tegbe positioned Nigeria at the centre of the global energy security conversation, citing the country’s more than 200 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves and its two-decade record of reliable LNG supply to Europe and Asia.
He identified the Electricity Act of 2023 as the most far-reaching reform of Nigeria’s power sector in a generation, saying it ended a long-standing federal monopoly and effectively created 37 emerging electricity markets across the federation under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu, GCFR.
“Capital does not flee risk; it flees uncertainty. Investors will price risk all day long; what they cannot price is a rule that changes after the contract is signed,” Tegbe said.
He described Nigeria’s reform agenda as a credibility agenda built on regulatory certainty, contract sanctity and bankable offtake.
The minister presented four propositions to summit delegates, arguing that diversification, rather than diplomatic disengagement, is the surest form of strategic insurance; grids now deserve the same strategic seriousness historically reserved for fuel supply; affordability is itself a security issue; and the global energy transition must be orderly, just and responsive to the circumstances of individual nations.
He said Africa, home to 600 million people still without electricity, sits at the centre of global energy geopolitics rather than at its periphery.
JKNewsMedia.com also reports that Tegbe pointed to the continent’s mineral wealth, solar resource, youthful workforce and fast-growing demand as factors that will shape energy security in London, Tokyo, Washington and Dubai in the decades ahead.
He also called for partnerships that move beyond raw resource extraction to include local processing, manufacturing, skills transfer and patient capital.
“Nigeria has chosen to build. Africa has chosen to build. And we invite you, in the spirit of this remarkable city and this landmark fiftieth summit, to build with us,” Tegbe told delegates in his closing remarks.
The minister’s Dubai engagements continue through the week, including a ministerial fireside on financing Africa’s power future as part of the summit’s Africa Spotlight programme.
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