OTL Africa Downstream Hosts 18th Edition in Lagos: Rallying Stakeholders for Industry Growth
The 18th edition of the OTL Africa Downstream Energy Week, themed “Alliances for Growth,” is set to take place from October 28 to 31, 2024, in Lagos. This year’s event aims to further enhance collaboration among industry players, regulators, and policymakers, promoting growth and innovation throughout the sector.
In a virtual press conference held in Lagos, the new Chief Executive Officer of OTL Africa Downstream Week, Mrs. Joyce Akabogu, shared key insights about the upcoming conference. “One of our main achievements has been engaging regulators across the midstream, downstream, and maritime sectors to ensure that their policies and processes align with the realities of the industry,” she stated.
The 2024 conference is designed to connect industry regulators, operators, and service providers, enabling decision-makers to gain a deeper understanding of the industry’s dynamics. The discussions will focus on refining operations, pricing and trading of petroleum products, logistics, shipping, LPG, lubricants, petrochemicals, and the government policies that critically influence sector growth.
This year’s event is expected to attract key stakeholders from beyond Nigeria, including representatives from Senegal’s PetroSen and Ghana, with a goal of expanding engagement across sub-Saharan Africa. “OTL Africa is committed to enhancing regional representation. We aim to broaden participation to create an inclusive platform for cross-border collaborations,” Akabogu added.
She emphasized that the participation of international stakeholders would provide industry players with valuable insights into regulatory policies and strategic guidance for navigating emerging challenges. The event will combine a strategic conference, exhibition, and networking opportunities, fostering knowledge exchange and business promotion throughout the value chain.
Over the past 18 years, OTL Africa Downstream has acted as a catalyst for industry development, setting the agenda for midstream and downstream operations across Africa. With a diverse range of stakeholders expected to attend, the event promises to tackle critical issues related to refining, shipping, financial services, and the policy frameworks shaping the industry.
This year’s agenda features 13 different sessions running concurrently with the exhibition, addressing key industry themes while introducing innovative discussions on health and wellness, as well as the role of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data in enhancing decision-making processes within the downstream sector. A new highlight of the event is the Founder’s Fireside session, which will showcase an entrepreneurial guest from the downstream sector each year, providing personal insights and sharing inspirational journeys of significant industry figures.
Mrs. Akabogu further emphasized OTL Africa’s four-pronged focus: capacity building, business matchmaking, advocacy, and industry research. She noted, “This event is a product of bigger thinking, facilitating discussions that allow regulators to better understand the pulse of the industry.”
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Highlighting the conference’s importance to the sector’s growth, Akabogu remarked, “Before OTL’s inception, the industry lacked a cohesive platform for expressing expectations and advocating for policy reforms.” She pointed out that there would be meaningful engagement with essential regulators in the midstream, downstream, and maritime industries, fostering collaboration among stakeholders to implement changes that positively project the downstream sector.
