The conference was opened by H.E. Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan James Wani Igga.
Regional Representatives included Hon. Simon D’Ujanga, State Minister for Energy of Uganda and Hon. Mubarak Elmahdi, Deputy Prime Minister of Sudan.
The two-day conference, the first energy event in South Sudan, will feature keynote speakers, panel discussions and presentations.
The inaugural South Sudan Oil & Power conference — the first dedicated energy event in South Sudan — was officially launched Wednesday by H.E. Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan James Wani Igga at UAP Equatoria Tower in Juba.
“Here, at the first dedicated energy event to be held in our country, we can show that South Sudan is emerging as a powerful nation with a truly world-class petroleum industry,” said Igga. “With 3.5 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and 3 trillion cubic feet of gas — despite little exploration work being completed in the country — we know that our energy industry will be the foundation of our future growth. This vast resource has the potential to propel South Sudan to economic greatness, benefit each and every person within this great country and establish a place for South Sudan on the global stage.”
The two-day event will see a powerful program of keynote speakers, moderated discussions on issues critical to South Sudan, presentations on operating in the frontier market and strategic networking meetings.
Key leaders in the African and South Sudanese oil industries also delivered keynote addresses Wednesday morning, including: Hon.. Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth, Minister of Petroleum of South Sudan; Hon. Moses Hassan Tiel, Minister of Trade, Industry and East African Affairs of South Sudan; Hon. Josephine Napon, Minister of Ministry of Environment and Forestry of South Sudan; Hon. Dr. Chol Abel Deng, Managing Director of Nilepet, the state-owned oil company; Hon. Lawrence Loku Mo’yu, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Energy and Dams of South Sudan; and Hon. Mubarak Elmahdi, Deputy Prime Minister of Sudan.
The Hon. Dr. Dhieu Mathok Ding Wol, Minister of Energy and Dams of South Sudan; Hon. Simon D’Ujanga, State Minister for Energy of Uganda; and Hon. Dr. Abraham Malet Mamer, Chairman of the South Sudan Investment Authority also participated in the conference opening Wednesday morning.
“The Vice President was right when he addressed the United Nations a couple of weeks ago, in saying that democracy and stability do not happen overnight,” said Guillaume Doane, CEO of Africa Oil & Power, the organizer of the conference. “South Sudan is a young nation, the world’s youngest nation, and it must be given time and patience to work things out. We wish South Sudan and its people continued strength and persistence in achieving the universal dream of peace and prosperity. And we will be here with this week to do what we can to accelerate progress, to create and foster new opportunities, to engender optimism and to sustain hope.”
Commissioned and endorsed by the Transitional Government of National Unity, the conference brings government officials, experts and key executives in the African oil and power sectors together to tackle some of the greatest challenges facing South Sudan’s oil and power industries today, including security, technology financing and regional integration and infrastructure needs.
The first day of the conference features presentations and panel discussions from the chairmen and presidents of South Sudan’s joint operating companies and major partners, as well as potential investors in the country.
Day two of the conference, led by local entrepreneurs, will include dynamic workshops and presentations, providing an intimate environment to discuss local content and CSR in frontier markets; financing projects in East Africa, raising capital and more.
The conference comes in a year of resurgence for South Sudan’s oil and gas industry. The government, led by H.E. General President Salva Kiir Mayardit, is keen to raise oil production. New players have entered the market, such as Oranto Petroleum, and current operators are continuing efforts to resume production.
Similar to Africa Oil & Power — the flagship event held annually in Cape Town — South Sudan Oil & Power is an invitation-only event, with about 350 delegates and 50 speakers attending in Juba. South Sudan also participated in Africa Oil & Power from June 5-7, 2017 in Cape Town, with a ministerial and business delegation coordinating a Market Spotlight during the annual event.
About AOP
Africa Oil & Power is the continent’s premier platform for energy investment and policy. With a heralded series of energy events, AOP brings together an elite class of ministers and senior level government officials and top executives of private sector companies spanning the energy value chain, including upstream, downstream, engineering, construction, services, consulting, power generation, legal and finance. AOP is the benchmark for top-tier networking and high-level discussion on a multitude of issues concerning the African energy landscape.
Contact:
Caty Hirst
Producer
Africa Oil & Power
Caty@africaoilandpower.com
