AfrElec - Africa Power Monitor

ASIAELEC: Asia’s coal proposals could threaten Paris goals

Coal is set to be more expensive than renewables, making green energy a better bet financially and environmentally.

MDB climate finance reaches $66bn in 2020

Multilateral development banks (MDBs) provided $66bn of climate finance in 2020, up from $61.6bn in 2019.

Hydro’s elderly turbines need fresh investment to contribute to net zero

Hydro needs new investment to replace elderly infrastructure and accelerate the road to net zero, the IEA says

Nigeria’s gas plans

Nigeria's government has proclaimed a “Decade of Gas” but may have difficulty realising its ambitions.

DFFE rejects Karpowership’s applications for LNG-to-power projects

South Africa’s Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) has decided against giving Karpowership (Turkey) permission to go ahead with three LNG-to-power projects.

Regional talks expected to expand collaboration

KenGen makes hydro plans more climate resilient

Kenya’s KenGen is set to modify its hydropower projects in a bid to make them resilient to climate change.

Adenia acquires South African solar distributor Herholdt’s

Adenia Partners, a private equity firm investing in Africa, has acquired a majority stake in Herholdt’s, a leading distributor of solar systems and low-voltage electrical products in South Africa, its first acquisition in the country.

EU carbon tax could hit South Africa

South Africa’s exports to Europe could be negatively affected when the European Union imposes carbon taxes on imports, as the country is heavily reliant on coal-fired electricity.

AfDB lends €83mn to Egypt to spur post-COVID-19 recovery

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved an €83mn loan to finance the second phase of Egypt’s Electricity and Green Growth Support Programme.

AFRELEC: Africa Renewable Energy Fund II raises €130mn

The Africa Renewable Energy Fund II has achieved its first close at €130mn, following a joint investment of €17.5mn from The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa and the Climate Technology Fund through the African Development Bank.

Most green energy beats coal on price in 2020

162 GW, or 62%, of new renewable capacity was cheaper than new fossil fuel-fired generation in 2020

NLNG launches work on Train 7

Nigeria LNG (NLNG) has formally begun work on the Train 7 project, which is slated to expand the consortium’s total production capacity to 30mn tonnes per year.

Karmol vessel arrives offshore Senegal to launch LNG-to-power project

Karmol, a 50:50 joint venture between Karpowership (Turkey) and Mitsui OSK Lines (Japan), has completed the delivery of a marine LNG import terminal to Senegal.

Morocco, IRENA to boost renewables, green hydrogen development

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and Morocco’s Energy Ministry have signed an agreement to develop the country green hydrogen industry in a bid to make the country a major exporter.

Ethiopia rejects Arab League’s support for United Nations intervention over GERD

Ethiopia has rejected the Arab League’s call for the GERD hydropower dispute with Egypt to be referred to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

South Africa offers “win-win” for hydrogen

Hydrogen offers South Africa a "win-win" for the government’s employment and decarbonisation goals, as the country can use its wind and sun resourced to produce low-carbon hydrogen for export and for use in the domestic economy.

AFRELEC: Globeleq begins grid-scale solar storage project in Mozambique

Africa-focused IPP Globeleq has begun to build a 9-MW solar and 7-MWh energy storage project at Cuamba in northern Mozambique.

EU, IEA call for energy access to be centre of African development finance

EU Commissioner Frans Timmermans and IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said that Africa could achieve universal access to power by 2030 if the rest of the world, led by Europe, puts energy access at the centre of economic co-operation with Africa.

G7 leaders’ green pledges are not enough to reach net zero

Ending public coal power investment in 2021 must be just the first step in reducing the role of fossil fuels

Globeleq begins work on grid-scale solar, storage project in Mozambique

Africa-focused IPP Globeleq and European government-backed Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) have officially broken ground on a 19-MW solar plant and a 7-MWh energy storage power in Cuamba in northern Mozambique.

Access to power rates fall in sub-Saharan Africa in past decade

The number of people without electricity in sub-Saharan Africa increased over the last 10 years, with Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Ethiopia posting the highest number of people without power access.

Eskom asks to add $600mn to future tariff income

South African utility Eskom has asked its regulator to allow it to add ZAR8.4bn ($616mn) to its tariff income, a request that will be unpopular with customers, who are again facing rotating blackouts.

South Africa High Court ruling spells end for Khanyisa coal power plant

The High Court in Pretoria has ruled the environmental approval for the 600-MW Khanyisa coal-fired power station has expired.

Egypt, Sudan express “deep concern” about Ethiopia’s filling of the GERD

Egyptian and Sudanese officials have stated their deep concern about Ethiopia's proposed filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) this summer without first reaching a binding legal agreement.