By Bassey Udo
Africa took a major step toward attaining
energy sovereignty following the official handover of the African Energy Bank (AEB) headquarters in Abuja.
The Bank is the flagship financial institution established to mobilize capital for the continent’s energy priorities and reinforce Africa’s energy value chains.
The handover ceremony took place in Abuja on Monday on the sidelines of the ongoing Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES 2026), where the President of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) and Côte d’Ivoire’s Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy, Mamadou Colibaly, commended Nigeria’s leadership in advancing the initiative.
Colibaly announced that the Bank was expected to commence operations in June this year.
“We are committed to launching this Bank not later than June. I sincerely thank our partners for providing the headquarters and office that make this take-off possible. The African Energy Bank represents Africa’s commitment to finance, develop, and secure its own energy future by Africans, for Africans,” Mr. Colibaly said.
The African Energy Bank is a joint initiative of APPO member-states and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank).
The Bank’s core mandate is to mobilize domestic and regional capital for energy infrastructure development, reduce Africa’s reliance on external financing, and align energy investments with the continent’s long-term development and industrialization goals.
While performing the hand-over, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said “Nigeria has met every obligation as host,” adding that the headquarters was ready, strategically located, and fully equipped and prepared for immediate take-off.
The ceremony, the Minister said, underscored a unified African resolve to take greater ownership of the continent’s abundant natural resources.
By offering targeted financial instruments, he said the Bank would support projects across the energy value chain, including exploration, refining, renewable energy integration, and local content development, ensuring that Africa’s resources translate into tangible economic value and job creation.
Speakers at the event emphasized that the African Energy Bank was not merely a financial institution, but a cornerstone of Africa’s broader quest for economic independence and lasting energy security.
The handover, they noted, signals the beginning of a new era in which Africans are determined to finance, produce, and sustain their own energy future.
The African Energy Bank is a pan-African financial institution jointly established by APPO member states and Afreximbank to provide tailored financing solutions for energy projects across Africa.
The Bank aims at strengthening regional energy markets, enhance value addition, and support sustainable development through increased access to capital.
