OTL Africa Downstream Energy Week has provided 20 years of continuity in an industry accustomed to change, bringing policymakers, investors and operators into sustained contact to build better-informed business decisions.
The Chairman of the Advisory Board, Otunba Adetunji Oyebanji, stated this in his welcome address at the opening session of the 20th anniversary edition in Lagos.
Welcoming delegates from across Africa and beyond, Oyebanji, who has attended OTL since 2009 and chaired its Advisory Board since 2022, said the theme “Secure Energy, Shared Prosperity” captures the true purpose of downstream business — enabling factories to produce, farmers to reach markets, aircraft to fly and households to earn a living.
Tracing two decades of market development, he noted that when OTL began in 2007, discussions centred on securing imports, managing administered prices and overcoming distribution constraints. That has changed.“Those concerns have not disappeared. But the range of choices available to African businesses has widened, and the continent’s capacity to shape its own supply arrangements has strengthened,” he said.
He cited Ghana’s petroleum price liberalisation in 2015 as a landmark for private participation in West Africa; Nigeria’s large-scale private refining led by Dangote Refinery which has changed possibilities for domestic supply and regional trade; Kenya’s new Mombasa-Nairobi pipeline in 2018 and petroleum links across Lake Victoria in East Africa; Egypt’s Mostorod refining development in North Africa upgrading streams into cleaner products; South Africa’s Lesedi fuel terminal in 2020 supporting inland supply; and Angola’s Cabinda Refinery first phase inaugurated in 2025.“Together, they show progress in refining, logistics and market organisation over the period in which OTL has convened this industry,” he said, stressing that downstream development depends on connections — a refinery needs feedstock and customers, a terminal needs transport, and every investment needs rules that sustain confidence
.Oyebanji acknowledged that challenges persist — heavy import dependence in some markets, uneven infrastructure, foreign exchange constraints, and investments that have not always translated into affordable supply — but said there is sufficient progress to justify confidence.On the global environment, he warned that conflict in the Middle East, insecurity around shipping routes, disruptions to Russian supplies, pressure on diesel and exceptionally high freight flagged by the IEA in October are hitting African businesses through expensive cargoes, larger working capital needs and delivery uncertainty.
He said additional African refining creates opportunities but its benefits depend on securing feedstock, operating efficiently and connecting production to demand, while cleaner fuels, gas, renewables and changing mobility must reflect African purchasing power and industrial needs.
He highlighted this year’s programme as practical: Regulatory Convergence and West African Fuels Congress on frameworks and regional markets; Competition in Nigeria’s New Downstream Market on investment and consumer protection; Feedstock Strategy and Refinery Competitiveness; Future Forecourt Solutions and Customer Behaviours; Scaling Energy Options on gas and renewables; plus sessions on lubricants and petrochemicals, energy finance, tanker shipping and logistics, and the Founders’ Fireside Forum.
Describing OTL as a place to do business, Oyebanji said its value lies in B2B and business-to-government engagement — where traders find supply relationships, equipment providers meet operators, financiers understand risks, and regulators hear how rules affect operations while businesses grasp public expectations.“OTL cannot substitute for the decisions that companies and governments must make. It can make those decisions better informed and make the necessary relationships easier to build,” he said.
He thanked sponsors, exhibitors, public-sector partners, speakers, delegates and the organising team, and urged participants to ask difficult questions, visit the exhibition and create room for unplanned conversations.“We have serious business to discuss, but there is every reason to approach it with openness, good humour and confidence in what we can achieve together,” he added.
