"Africa is no longer just a supplier": The continent's rising energy influence

This story has significance for readers across Kenya and beyond.

Editor's Note: In this article, Ossama El-Khattib, Export Sales Director at El Sewedy Electric Industries, examines Africa's transformation from a peripheral energy supplier to a central geopolitical arena. He argues that the continent's abundant critical minerals and renewable potential are reshaping global power dynamics, forcing major economies to compete for influence while African nations seek greater energy sovereignty and industrialisation.

Africa is entering a pivotal phase in redefining its role within the global energy landscape.

The continent is no longer viewed merely as a supplier of raw materials or a peripheral energy consumer. Instead, it is increasingly emerging as a strategic geopolitical arena where the interests of major global powers intersect with complex domestic priorities related to economic development, energy security, industrialisation, and energy sovereignty.

What are Africa's energy consumption statistics?

Although Africa is home to nearly 18% of the world's population, it accounts for only around 6% of global energy consumption, highlighting a profound structural gap in access to electricity and modern energy services.

According to the World Bank, more than 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity, with the challenge particularly acute in Sub-Saharan Africa, where electricity access rates remain below 50% in several countries. This disparity reflects not a shortage of natural resources, but rather decades of underinvestment, inadequate infrastructure, weak institutional governance, and limited energy financing.

Within the traditional energy landscape, several African countries have emerged as key pillars of the continent's influence in global oil and gas markets.

Nigeria remains Africa's largest oil producer, with crude oil output averaging between 1.2 and 1.4 million barrels per day and proven reserves exceeding 36 billion barrels. These resources position Nigeria as a major player in international energy markets, despite persistent challenges related to refinery capacity, pipeline vandalism, and crude oil theft.

Algeria occupies a strategic position in the global natural gas market, producing approximately 90–100 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually. The country has become one of the European Union's most important gas suppliers, particularly following the restructuring of European energy supply chains after the global gas crisis.

Angola produces around one million barrels of oil per day, with hydrocarbons accounting for more than 90% of its export revenues, making its economy highly vulnerable to fluctuations in international oil prices.

In North Africa, Libya remains a significant energy producer despite ongoing political instability. During periods of relative stability, oil production ranges between 1.0 and 1.2 million barrels per day.

Meanwhile, Egypt has emerged as an increasingly important natural gas hub in the Eastern Mediterranean following major offshore discoveries, particularly the giant Zohr gas field, which has repositioned the country as a regional energy exporter.

How Africa's energy map is evolving

Beyond oil and natural gas, Africa's energy landscape is gradually shifting toward renewable energy, creating new opportunities to reshape geopolitical influence.

Morocco has become one of the world's leading solar energy producers through the Noor Ouarzazate Solar Complex, with a total installed capacity exceeding 580 megawatts, making it one of the largest concentrated solar power projects globally.

Egypt has also significantly expanded its renewable energy portfolio through landmark projects such as the Benban Solar Park, recognised as one of the largest solar energy developments in the world.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, Kenya has established itself as a global leader in geothermal energy, with geothermal resources supplying more than 40% of the country's electricity generation, making it one of the world's most successful examples of renewable energy deployment.

South Africa, despite generating more than 80% of its electricity from coal, accounts for approximately 20% of Africa's installed electricity generation capacity, making it one of the continent's most influential energy markets. However, it also faces one of the region's greatest challenges in transitioning toward a low-carbon economy.

How China, EU and US are shaping Africa's energy infrastructure

Africa's evolving energy landscape cannot be understood without considering the intensifying competition among major global powers for influence over the continent's resources, infrastructure, and future energy markets.

China has become Africa's largest financier of energy infrastructure, investing more than US$70 billion over the past decade in electricity generation, transmission networks, renewable energy projects, and transport infrastructure.

The European Union has increasingly shifted its strategic attention toward North Africa to secure reliable natural gas supplies from Algeria, Libya, and Egypt, as part of broader efforts to diversify energy imports and strengthen long-term energy security.

Meanwhile, the United States has focused on supporting clean energy investments and developing supply chains for critical minerals, aiming to reduce dependence on Chinese dominance in strategic resources such as cobalt and lithium.

This growing geopolitical competition reflects Africa's transformation from a traditional energy supplier into a central pillar of the future global energy economy.

Why is Africa vital for global energy transition?

Alongside hydrocarbons, critical minerals have become an essential component of modern energy geopolitics. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) alone produces more than 70% of the world's cobalt, a critical raw material used in electric vehicle batteries and advanced energy storage technologies.

Similarly, Zambia and Zimbabwe possess substantial reserves of copper and lithium, positioning Africa as an indispensable player in global supply chains supporting the clean energy transition.

As a result, energy power in the twenty-first century is no longer measured solely by oil and gas production. Increasingly, it is defined by the ability to secure, process, and control the critical minerals that underpin the global green economy.

Despite its enormous resource wealth, Africa continues to face severe structural constraints. More than 70% of people living in Sub-Saharan Africa experience frequent electricity outages or lack access to reliable electricity altogether.

According to international estimates, the continent requires more than US$100 billion in annual investment to close its energy infrastructure gap and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This financing deficit demonstrates that Africa's primary challenge is not resource availability but rather the mobilisation of capital, institutional reform, technology transfer, and effective governance.

What role does energy geopolitics play in Africa’s future?

Africa stands today at a historic crossroads. The continent has the opportunity to transform its abundant energy resources into a foundation for industrialisation, value-added manufacturing, economic diversification, and sustainable development. Alternatively, it risks remaining primarily an exporter of raw materials within an unequal global economic system.

The future of Africa's energy geopolitics will therefore be determined not simply by the volume of oil or gas it produces, but by its ability to develop integrated energy policies, strengthen domestic value chains, attract high-quality investment, and build competitive industrial ecosystems around both conventional and renewable energy resources.

Africa is no longer merely an energy reservoir for the rest of the world. It has become a strategic arena where geography, economics, technology, and international politics converge. In the decades ahead, energy will represent not only a source of economic growth but also one of the most powerful instruments of national sovereignty, geopolitical influence, and sustainable prosperity.

The author, Ossama El-Khattib, is the export sales director at El Sewedy Electric Industries in Egypt.

Views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of TUKO.co.ke.

Source: TUKO.co.ke

Reporting originally appeared via TUKO. Read the full source for additional context.