“Africa’s success should not ultimately be measured by the quantity of resources it exports, but by the lasting economic and industrial value it creates from them.” From reliable energy and infrastructure to competitive local companies, engineering capabilities, technology transfer, skilled professionals and new industries, veteran African energy player Franck Pliya makes the case for looking beyond production and exports to what investment actually leaves behind. For him, “Africa’s energy moment is not tomorrow. It is now.”
By Ajong Mbapndah L
Africa’s energy story is entering a decisive phase. Major discoveries, new gas developments and billions of dollars in investment are reshaping the continent’s energy landscape, but for Franck Pliya, the bigger question is what Africa ultimately gains from its resources.
With more than 25 years of experience in the energy industry, Pliya has watched the sector evolve across West and Central Africa and believes the conversation must increasingly move beyond barrels produced, gas exported and revenues generated. The real prize, he argues, lies in using energy to power industries, strengthen local companies, develop African expertise, create jobs and build economies capable of capturing more value from their natural resources.
That thinking is also at the heart of his forthcoming book, The African Energy Moment, which examines the choices facing the continent at a time when energy security, gas development, industrialisation, local content and geopolitics are converging in new ways.
In this exclusive interview for the Pan African Visions African Energy Week 2026 Special, Pliya reflects on the changing energy landscape in West and Central Africa, the emergence of Senegal and Mauritania as gas players, Angola’s renewed momentum, the investment opportunities across Africa’s energy value chain and the growing importance of African Energy Week as a meeting point for governments, investors and industry.
Above all, he makes the case for a more ambitious measure of success: not simply how much energy Africa produces, but how much lasting economic and industrial value it creates from it.
You have spent more than two decades working across the African energy sector. How has this experience shaped your perspective on the continent’s energy development?
It has taught me that discovering or producing energy resources is only the beginning of the story.
Over the years, I have seen the African energy industry from different perspectives and witnessed the extraordinary complexity involved in transforming a discovery into an operating project and, ultimately, into economic value.
This experience has reinforced one fundamental conviction: developing resources and benefiting from them are two very different things.
The real measure of success is not simply how many barrels or cubic metres a country produces. It is what remains afterwards: infrastructure, electricity, industrial capacity, local companies, technical expertise, employment and stronger institutions.
That perspective has progressively shaped both my professional thinking and the central argument of The African Energy Moment.
From your experience in West and Central Africa, how has the region’s energy landscape evolved in recent years?
The transformation has been remarkable.
West Africa combines established producing countries with a new generation of energy provinces. Senegal and Mauritania have entered the LNG landscape through Grand Tortue Ahmeyim, while other gas resources create potential for domestic power generation and industrial development.
At the same time, established markets across West and Central Africa continue to invest in refining, gas monetisation, infrastructure modernisation and the development of local capabilities.
What has changed most, in my view, is the ambition. The discussion is increasingly moving beyond simply producing hydrocarbons toward the question of how energy can support broader economic and industrial development.
That is a very important evolution.
How do you assess the energy developments taking place in Senegal and Mauritania, particularly in the gas sector?
Senegal and Mauritania are particularly interesting because they demonstrate how quickly the energy position of a country can evolve following major discoveries.
Grand Tortue Ahmeyim has placed both countries on the international LNG map and, importantly, has demonstrated the value of cross-border cooperation around a shared resource.
But GTA should be viewed as the beginning rather than the final destination.
For Senegal in particular, the next strategic question is how gas can progressively support domestic electricity generation, industrialisation and other value chains while maintaining access to international markets.
The opportunity is therefore much broader than LNG exports alone. It is about creating an integrated gas economy capable of generating sustainable value locally.
How would you describe Africa’s current energy business environment, and where do you see the strongest opportunities for investment?
I see significant opportunities across the entire value chain.
Africa still needs substantial investment in exploration and production, but equally important opportunities exist downstream: gas processing, LNG and floating LNG, gas-to-power, refining and refinery modernisation, fertilisers, petrochemicals and energy infrastructure.
There is also a growing opportunity around African engineering capabilities, project services, operations and maintenance, and local industrial ecosystems.
Investors should therefore not look at Africa solely as a source of hydrocarbons for export. The continent itself represents an enormous future energy and industrial market.
What should African countries do differently to turn their oil and gas resources into jobs, industrialisation and long-term economic growth?
They need to start with the end objective in mind.
The objective should not simply be to maximise production. It should be to maximise the long-term economic value created from production.
That means connecting energy projects to industrial policy: electricity generation, fertiliser production, petrochemicals, infrastructure, local supply chains, training and the development of national technical capabilities.
It also requires strong institutions and the ability to negotiate contracts with a long-term perspective.
Countries that approach energy development as part of an industrial strategy will capture significantly more value than those that approach each project simply as an isolated source of fiscal revenue.
You recently participated in Angola Oil & Gas. What were your main takeaways from the event and your engagements there?
My main takeaway was the renewed momentum of Angola’s energy sector.
What I found particularly interesting was the combination of continued commitment to oil and gas production with a stronger focus on gas monetisation, new exploration and the development of infrastructure.
Angola already possesses significant industry experience, infrastructure and human capital. The challenge now is how to leverage those strengths to support the next generation of developments.
More broadly, AOG confirmed something I see across Africa: countries are increasingly asking not only how to produce more energy, but how to capture more value from what they produce.
That is an important shift.
African Energy Week has become an important gathering for the continent’s energy industry. How do you see its role in shaping dialogue between governments, national companies, investors and international industry players?
AEW has become an important platform because it brings together many of the actors who actually shape African energy projects.
Governments, national energy companies, international operators, investors, technology providers and service companies are able to discuss both the opportunities and the constraints facing the industry.
For me, its value goes beyond individual transactions. It provides an opportunity to discuss the broader strategic questions: investment, gas monetisation, industrialisation, local content, financing and the development of African capabilities.
Africa needs these spaces where the conversation about its energy future can increasingly be shaped from an African perspective.
As you prepare for AEW 2026, what discussions and themes do you believe should be at the centre of the agenda in Cape Town?
I believe one question should sit at the centre of the discussion: How do we transform investment into lasting value for African economies?
Attracting investment remains essential. Major energy projects require capital, technology, expertise and international partnerships.
But the conversation should increasingly examine what those investments leave behind: reliable energy, infrastructure, competitive local companies, engineering capabilities, technology transfer, skilled professionals and new industries.
The most successful partnerships will be those that reconcile the legitimate economic objectives of investors with the long-term development ambitions of African countries.
Local content and technology transfer remain major priorities across Africa. What more can be done to build stronger African capabilities in the energy sector?
We need to move from measuring local content primarily in terms of employment percentages toward measuring capability creation.
Creating jobs during construction is important, but the more strategic question is what remains after construction is completed.
Can local engineers take greater responsibility on the next project? Can local companies move from basic services into engineering, fabrication, maintenance and project management? Can national companies progressively assume greater technical and commercial responsibilities?
Technology transfer is successful when knowledge becomes embedded locally.
Ultimately, successful local content should produce local competence.
Your forthcoming book is titled The African Energy Moment. What is the book about, and why did you decide to write it now?
The African Energy Moment is a strategic essay about Africa’s energy future and the choices that will determine whether the continent’s resources translate into lasting prosperity.
It examines gas development, LNG, geopolitics, industrialisation, local content, national companies, energy diplomacy and leadership.
After more than 25 years in the energy industry, I wanted to step back from individual projects and ask a broader question: what ultimately determines whether an energy resource transforms a country?
The timing also matters. Global energy security has returned to the centre of international geopolitics, major African energy developments are progressing, and the continent’s own energy needs continue to grow.
I believe this creates a unique window of opportunity for Africa.
What central message do you hope readers will take from The African Energy Moment?
The central message can be expressed very simply: Developing resources and benefiting from them are two very different things.
Africa’s success should not ultimately be measured by the quantity of resources it exports, but by the lasting economic and industrial value it creates from them.
Energy should help power African economies, build industries, strengthen companies, develop expertise and create opportunities for the next generation.
Resources provide the opportunity. Leadership and strategic choices determine the outcome.
How do you hope the book will contribute to Africa’s energy discourse, and what does the “African Energy Moment” ultimately mean to you?
I hope the book contributes to a conversation that moves beyond the traditional debate between resource development and energy transition.
Africa needs a pragmatic energy strategy that reflects its own economic realities, resources and development priorities.
For me, the “African Energy Moment” is the point at which the continent recognises that its energy resources are not simply commodities to be extracted, but strategic instruments capable of supporting industrialisation, economic sovereignty and human development.
It is also a message to the next generation of African professionals and leaders: the expertise, ambition and resources already exist. The challenge is to bring them together around a long-term vision.
Africa’s energy moment is not tomorrow. It is now.
*Culled from October Issue of PAV Magazine
