Tag Archives: renewable energy

Without flexibility, Nigeria will face difficulties integrating large amounts of renewable energy into the grid

Op-ed by Wale Yusuff, Managing Director of  Wartsila Marine & Power Service Nig Ltd As the largest economy in Africa, with huge gas reserves and high solar energy potential, Nigeria has all the natural resources necessary to meet the growing demand for electricity. However, the inadequate energy infrastructure still leaves a significant part of the population without […]

Winch Energy Closes Largest Limited Recourse Mini Grid Portfolio To Date In Uganda And Sierra Leone And Creation Of A New Platform Winch IPP Holdings For Future Investments

Winch Energy - Bafodia, Sierra Leone

Leading off-grid utilities provider, Winch Energy, has completed the funding for solar mini grid projects in 49 villages across Uganda and Sierra Leone through the creation of a new platform, Winch Energy IPP Holdings Limited (“WIPP”). The deal represents the largest mini grid financing portfolio to date, bringing together several major players in the off-grid […]

Janus Continental Group (JCG) Invests $13 Million in Highview Power as part of African renewable energy storage drive

JCG’s investment arm Janus Capital takes stake in Highview Enterprise Limited. The deal will bring Highview Power’s cutting edge CRYOBattery™ energy storage technology to JCG’s core markets in sub-Saharan Africa. The investment will unleash the potential of renewable energy storage across Africa, supporting JCG’s wider growth and business goals in this sector.  Janus Continental Group (JCG), […]

How Egypt banks on renewables to meet expected surge of energy demand

Essakane hybrid power plant 15 MWp solar PV power plant in Essakane, Burkina Faso. The solar PV plant will be built next to a 55 MW Wärtsilä power plant currently running on heavy fuel oil, Africa’s largest engine-solar PV hybrid power plant.

To meet its soaring demand for energy, Egypt is turning to renewable sources. Its targets, if accomplished, will see it become a pioneer in the African energy landscape. But are the plans realistic?  Egypt’s population has now passed 100 million. As one of the most populous and fastest-growing nations on the African continent, providing electricity […]

Energy storage technology will make blackouts in Africa ancient history

Energy system integration night

A shift from Africa’s traditional approach to power generation is needed to unleash the continent’s clean energy potential and secure an African future free from blackouts. A strategy centred around energy storage and flexible power systems will be the key to guaranteeing the reliability of a high-renewable grid, while also lowering the cost of electricity […]

Neutrino Energy Solves Off-Grid Electrification Problems

Earth Night Orbit Rotate Planet Star Background. Epic Space Globe Surface Constellation Cosmos Navigation Travel Universe Exploration Concept 3D Animation

In 1935, President Roosevelt created the Rural Electrification Administration, which helped millions of Americans in remote communities gain access to electricity for the first time. Since then, similar projects have been undertaken around the world, but nearly a billion  people worldwide still live without electricity. Existing energy technologies delivering electricity to underserved populations are inherently […]

Smart housing prototype shows promise in rapidly urbanizing Africa

Africa is urbanizing fast, as its population grows and many flocks to cities in search of jobs, education and healthcare. Studies show that hundreds of millions more Africans will live in cities over the next three decades. Many of these new urban Africans, however, are likely to end up in informal settlements. Already an estimated […]

Trends and Events in Africa 2018

Map of the REC Pillars of the African Economic Community. Photo Credit: Wikipedia

by Johan Burger 2018 has been an interesting year for Africa, with various events and trends becoming visible. 2016 saw the effects of the slowdown of China’s economic growth due to its rebalancing of its economy and the end of the commodity price super cycle. 2017 brought some relief. In Africa, 2018 demonstrated a number […]

Friday@Noon on Renewable Energy in Africa: 2018

African Business News

by Johan Burger The NTU-SBF Centre for African Studies publishes a weekly newsletter on issues relevant to Africa. This paper is based on issues addressed in the newsletter. A trend of earlier years in which we saw the further growth and development of the renewable energy sector, has continued in 2018. Renewable energy is becoming […]

Dropping Solar Power Tariff Rates Spurring Indian Photovoltaic Generator Market

Netscribes launches report on the Photovoltaic Generator Market in India 2012 as part of Netscribes’ Energy and Utilities report series.   Mumbai, India, December, 2012 –(PR.com)– Solar PV power generation has long been acknowledged as a superior form of clean energy technology with vast potential, assuming its cost component can be significantly reduced. It draws […]

AE-AMD Renewable Energy And Tenesol/SunPower Begin Work On Two Solar Projects In South Africa

Projects are Part of Government’s IPP Procurement Program   JOHANNESBURG and SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — AE-AMD Renewable Energy, a joint venture between the Spanish AMDA energia and the South African Alt-E Technologies, and Tenesol, a SunPower company (NASDAQ: SPWR), today announced two South African ground-mounted solar power projects totaling 33 megawatts (MW).  […]

Africa’s Energy Stakeholders Embrace “Global Technology for Local Solutions”

The timing of the first POWER-GEN Africa and Renewable Energy World Africa, which took place from 6-8 November 2012 in Johannesburg could not have been more favourable as the first contracts between the South African government and independent power producers (IPPs) to add 1400 megawatts of renewable energy to the national grid was signed during […]

Canadian Solar Supplies Modules for Turkey’s Largest Commercial PV Project: 540 kW Solar Power Plant at Izmir Airport Installed by Gehrlicher Merk Solar

First PV project under the new Turkish 500 kW law   ONTARIO, Canada, Nov., 2012 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Canadian Solar Inc. (the “Company” or “Canadian Solar”) (NASDAQ: CSIQ), one of the world’s largest solar companies, provided its CS6P-P solar modules for the first project under the new Turkish solar energy legislation, YEK (Law on the utilization […]

Standard Bank Group commits R9.4bn to first batch of renewable energy projects

Standard Bank Group has emerged as the leading investor in the first round of South Africa’s renewable energy independent power producer (REIPP) procurement process, backing a total of 11 wind and solar projects. Standard Bank Group will provide comprehensive corporate and investment banking services to all its clients, including underwriting R9.4-billion worth of debt, providing […]

Abengoa Begins Construction on Two CSP Plants Awarded by the South Africa Department of Energy

– Khi Solar One and KaXu Solar One will be the first concentrating solar power (CSP) plants in South Africa and will use advanced technology specifically developed for the country’s needs – Both plants will be able to store energy and generate power after sunset SEVILLE, Spain, Nov., 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Abengoa, the international company that […]

Serving up a POWER-GEN-sized slice of colossal Kusile

  As part of the inaugural POWER-GEN Africa, taking place at the Sandton Convention Centre from 6-8 November, an intrepid group of delegates had a unique opportunity to visit Kusile, which once operational will be the fourth largest coal-fired power installation in the world. By its scheduled 2018 completion date the station, located in Mpumalanga […]

International business must reach out to the global masses

  By Thandisizwe Mgudlwa An initiative aimed at mobilizing the Global business community to achieve sustainable prosperity must be taken seriously. A document released from Washington, D.C reveals that transnational corporations are now so numerous and in some cases so well capitalized that their global influence now rivals and in many cases exceeds that of […]

Standard Bank Group ranked South Africa’s greenest company

  Standard Bank Group has been ranked South Africa’s “greenest” company in the 2012 Newsweek Green Rankings. Standard Bank Group was ranked 21st globally in the Financial Sector category and 64th overall. Other South African companies included in the rankings were MTN, Bidvest and Sasol. Newsweek, an international weekly news magazine, publishes the Green Rankings […]

IN CHINA, AFRICA, UNITED NATIONS WILL CONNECT THOSE WHO FACE CHALLENGES WITH THOSE WHO HAVE SOLUTIONS, SECRETARY-GENERAL SAYS AT BEIJING FORUM

  NEW YORK, July 20, 2012/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks to the Fifth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, in Beijing, 19 July: It is a great honour for me to participate on behalf of the United Nations at this important Forum on China-Africa cooperation. I […]

AfDB supports Gabon renewable energy sector with €57m loan

  LIBREVILLE, Gabon, July 20, 2012/African Press Organization (APO)/ – The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group (http://www.afdb.org), through its private sector window, approved on 18 July 2012 in Tunis, a senior loan of €57.5 million to the Coder Hydropower Project for the design, construction and operation of two run-of-river hydro […]

SunEdison Closes 98 MW of Solar Projects in Europe

SunEdison demonstrates its ability to deploy high value solar assets in Europe and to structure complex transactions attracting world class financing partners BELMONT, Calif., July 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — SunEdison, a leading worldwide solar energy services provider and a subsidiary of MEMC Electronic Materials (NYSE: WFR), today provided additional details on the solar project closings announced […]

Clean Power Africa in Cape Town to focus on new opportunities in hydro and solar industries

South African Energy Minister Dipuo Peters to welcome delegates The Clean Power Africa conference and exhibition in Cape Town in September will focus on new opportunities in the clean energy sectors such as retrofitting hydropower to current dams and helping the mining industry to use excess water to provide onsite power. South Africa’s Energy Minister […]