Browsing: green energy

• Following a slow recovery from the debilitating impact of COVID-19, Africa’s economic growth declined to an estimated 3.8 per cent in 2022 and later deteriorated to 3.3 per cent in 2023.
• Africa is not immune to economic shocks and has recently faced a multi-crisis situation.
• African countries have posted more than 5 per cent output expansions in 2024.

Africas economic outlook

Before COVID-19, Africa experienced 20 years of solid growth and made tangible economic and social progress. However, the COVID crisis brought this progress to an abrupt halt, and many countries, which are under increasingly tight budget constraints, struggled to invest in essential sectors amidst recovering from the aftermath of the health crisis.

Following a slow recovery from the debilitating impact of COVID-19, Africa’s economic growth declined to an estimated 3.8 per cent in 2022 and later deteriorated to 3.3 per cent in 2023.

However, according to a recent UN …

• There is a Climate Funding gap of 40 billion dollars in blue carbon, yet no Kenyan firms are undertaking it.
• According to the World Bank, Kenya remains vulnerable to frequent climatic shocks that pose significant economic risks.
• The East African country has been gravely affected by changing weather patterns and a fall in disposable income available for necessities.

Despite their considerable potential, Kenya is foregoing billions of dollars in untapped climate financing opportunities. While many startups are entering this sector, industry experts argue that the current figure remains insufficient to combat climate change adequately.

Pangea Accelerator, an investment platform that provides funding for startups and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), says that the region needs to grow the number of startups, fully focusing on the environment. The Founder of Pangea, Jonas Tesfu, says that as a country, Kenya needs to have a lot of innovative businesses join climate change initiatives …

• Global oil and gas producers have remained under immense pressure to show more goodwill in the energy transition agenda.
• As this year’s climate summit enters its homestretch, the most intriguing question is whether the final accord will pledge to reduce fossil fuels.
• The oil and gas industry’s confidence has also caused tension with renewable groups and climate activists.

The 2015 Paris Agreement establishes measures and conditions requiring all member states to mitigate climate change through emission reductions. Further, Goal 7 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls for concerted efforts to ensure access to modern, cleaner forms of energy, while Goal 13 calls for action to combat climate change.

Consequently, the global energy transition is on the cards. There have been calls from the global north to the south for the world to find a proper compromise on energy needs even as climate change effects put sterner demands on …

• Around 200 countries have agreed on how to run the Climate Loss and Damage Fund to help vulnerable nations address more extreme weather conditions.
• Germany and the UAE have pledged $100 million each to the climate damages initiative.
• The World Bank will host the Climate Loss and Damage Fund on a trial basis. 

Around 200 countries have agreed on how to run the Climate Loss and Damage Fund to help vulnerable nations address more extreme weather conditions. Consequently, rich nations have pledged at least $260 million to kickstart the program, making a breakthrough as global climate deliberations opened in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Delegates at the COP28 summit on Thursday adopted a framework for the World Bank to host the Loss and Damage Fund following months of negotiations. This year’s host, the UAE, indicated it would contribute $100 million, adding another $100 million from Germany. The United Kingdom …

• Mozambique’s Green Energy Transition Strategy (ETS) to drastically reduce its dependence on fossil fuels.
• As a nation with one of the world’s lowest electricity consumption rates, Mozambique is poised to leapfrog into a new era of energy sufficiency and independence.
• Mozambique’s success or failure of this venture could offer valuable lessons for other countries grappling with the complexities of sustainable development and climate-aligned economic growth.

Mozambique’s green energy move

Mozambique has embarked on an $80 billion Energy Transition Strategy (ETS) to drastically reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. This bold initiative, set to be unveiled by President Filipe Nyusi at the COP28 international climate summit in Dubai, represents a significant pivot towards sustainable development and positions Mozambique at the forefront of the global green energy transition.

At the heart of Mozambique’s strategy is integrating 2,000 megawatts of hydropower capacity by 2030, which aims to address the country’s energy poverty and …

A new commentary from the International Energy Agency (IEA) on the upcoming World Energy Outlook 2023 has revealed that despite improvements, global access to electricity still needs to catch up to the pace required to meet SDG 7. The commentary supports discussions from the recently concluded United Nations’ SDG Summit on 18-19 September 2023. It is also part of the IEA’s support of the first global stocktake of the Paris Agreement, which will be finalized in the run-up to COP28, the next UN Climate Change Conference, at the end of 2023.…

• Zambia’s state-owned power utility Zesco has signed an agreement with the United Arab Emirates’ renewable energy company Masdar to develop solar projects worth US$2 billion.
• The project will commence immediately, starting with the phased installation of 500 megawatts (MW)
• Zambia has been rationing electricity supply following a big drop in water levels in Lake Kariba, threatening hydropower generation which contributes more than 75 per cent of the country’s power output.

The United Arab Emirates’ government-owned renewable energy company, Masdar, and Zambia’s state-owned energy company, ZESCO, recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) to develop 2 GW of solar energy in Zambia. The project, which is worth US$ 2 billion, will be developed in phases over the next five years, starting with the installation of 500 MW, President Hakainde Hichilema said.

“This is not a loan but a capital injection in which the Zambian people, …

• CrossBoundary Energy has completed a US$40 million equity investment from Norfund and KLP
• The deal will allow CrossBoundary Energy to further scale its investments in renewable energy solutions for commercial and industrial businesses across Africa
• The $40M commitment is a continuation of Norfund’s and KLP’s earlier investments in the C&I sector and endorses the scale and maturity of the distributed generation sector in Africa

Renewable energy systems developer CrossBoundary Energy has completed a US$40 million equity investment from Norfund and KLP.

Norfund is the Norwegian Investment Fund for developing countries, while KLP is Norway’s largest pension company.

According to the partners, the commitment will allow CrossBoundary Energy to further scale its investments in renewable energy solutions for commercial and industrial businesses across Africa.

The $40M commitment is a continuation of Norfund and KLP’s earlier investments in the C&I sector and endorses the scale and maturity of the distributed generation sector …

Africa’s post-Covid-19 growth recovery and economic prosperity are dependent on renewable energy which will be a critical driver. 

According to International Energy Agency data, scaling up Africa’s capacity to achieve universal access to energy by 2030 would require over US$100 billion per year. Of this amount, 40 per cent would be dedicated to solar, wind, and other low-carbon power generation projects. 

There are a number of initiatives meant to accelerate electrification on the continent among which is the African Development Bank (AfDB)’s New Deal on Energy for Africa which is a transformative partnership-based strategy that aims to increase access to energy for all Africans.…

Distributed Power Africa (DPA) has unveiled a 1.2MW solar installation at Liquid Telecom’s  Campus in Midrand, Johannesburg –one of their largest projects to date in South Africa. Recently, the company also announced a major deal with Tesla to bring Powerwalls into Zimbabwe, as a part of their telecoms power solution.

According to the CEO of DPA Africa, Norman Moyo “This solar deployment to Liquid Telecom Midrand is a major development in improving energy security for critical users like data centres.  It will improve their power security and energy efficiencies.  The power needs of data centres tend to be heavy and sensitive, and DPA’s engineering hopes to provide a reliable power supply to keep this operation running with no downtime.”

DPA designed and is engineering the Liquid Telecom Midrand solar plant as a combined carport and rooftop solution, that will come complete with a real-time power monitoring system.  This initiative is …