We are pleased to introduce to the network our newest strategic partner, the Sahara Group. Founded in 1996, Sahara is a leading international energy and infrastructure conglomerate headquartered in Lagos with business operations across the energy and infrastructure value chain including the upstream, midstream, downstream, power, real estate and infrastructure. On the back of its deep knowledge and insight into the African energy and infrastructure sectors, Sahara seeks entrepreneurial opportunities to create market-leading businesses. Although its current focus is on emerging markets, Sahara’s long-term vision is to become “the provider of choice wherever energy is consumed.”
The group started with the formation of the then Sahara Resource Energy Limited, the first Sahara Group company that was established with a focus on the trading of petroleum products. Since then, Sahara Group has seen significant expansion, with over 5000 employees globally, and operations in more than 42 countries, across 4 continents.
Sahara Group highlights, amongst other great achievements, over $10 billion consolidated revenue, more than $12 billion transaction closed, and 100,000 BPD target crude oil production. These achievements are met through the brand mission which is to transform through creativity, determination, and relationship building while continually seeking ways to generate value.
Additionally, Sahara Group is committed to promoting good corporate citizenship across the globe. This led to the inception of the Sahara Foundation. The Foundation is the vehicle of the Group’s Personal and Corporate Social Responsibility (PCSR initiatives). Through the Foundation, Sahara Groups works on initiatives that increase access to energy and promote sustainable environments. They have done this through volunteering initiatives, promoting clean energy with Sahara Impact Fund, transforming the skills of young people, advancing various programs like the STEAMers program that facilitates sustainable development across Africa, and many other avenues. At the AL for Infrastructure sector, we see a clear alignment of objectives between Sahara Group and ourselves and we are excited to explore different forms a partnership for the benefit of the communities we serve.
To show their commitment to championing the development of young infrastructure sector leaders, Ejiro Gray, the Executive Director of Governance and Sustainability attended and gave a keynote address at our Infrastructure side event during the recently concluded Networks Gathering in Ghana. At the gathering, Ejiro shared more about their performance as a fully integrated energy player and reiterated the role played by the Group as a leading party in energy transition across Africa. She urged transition experts and companies to consider natural gas as a viable transition energy source as the world is still grappling with innovating new technologies and bettering existing renewable sources to improve efficiency.
Equally, she called on our young leaders to take their space in the energy transition journey as the process has the potential to provide more jobs in the energy sector and stimulate industrialization and development based on clean, affordable and reliable sources of energy. Ejiro noted that the clean energy sources require development and continuous improvement for efficiency and affordability. They also require installation and maintenance e.g. solar farms, wind farms, green hydrogen, geo-thermal, hydro power. These are the areas where young people have the greatest opportunity to shape the future by being the captains of all aspects of energy transition.
Sahara Group has earned itself a role in Africa’s leading independent E&P players with a diverse portfolio of 8 oil & gas assets in prolific basins across Africa and a production capacity of at least 10,000 bopd with plans to boost production to at least 100,000 bopd over the next 5 years. There is no doubt that Sahara Group has earned its place as being a trailblazer in the energy and infrastructure sectors across Africa. We are delighted at the opportunity to work more closely with Sahara Group in the immediate future!
