Algeria's Energy Future was launched at a half-day round-table seminar at Chatham House, London, on Wednesday 6 April.
The report was presented at the seminar by its lead authors, Jon Marks and John Hamilton, and critically assessed by Algerian and international experts. Read more
The African Energy Atlas has established itself as an indispensable resource for energy industry professionals.
The 2011 edition features more than 45 maps and charts drawn with expert care by journalist cartographer David Burles. Read more
Briefings and Reports 2
AfricaHardball is an executive dialogue that brings together policy-makers, industry leaders and analysts to discuss the key political issues affecting African markets in frank and open terms.
The next AfricaHardball roundtable will be held on 1 December in London, focusing on North Africa Read more
Briefings and Reports 3
A detailed and frank analysis of Libya’s energy sector
Published in July 2010, Libya's Energy Future provides authoritative, independently sourced analysis of Libya’s energy sector policy and history, examines the country’s governance and financial record and assesses the potential for international partners to do business with its institutions and interest groups.
On the page below you will find a selection of articles from the African Energy archive. All links preceded by a padlock symbol require a subscription.
Eskom’s 5 December announcement that it was not going ahead with the much-anticipated Nuclear 1 project in Western Cape was hardly unexpected, industry sources in Johannesburg told African Energy. Issue 152, 12 December 2008.more
Coega refinery contract for KBR
PetroSA has given KBR a contract to provide feasibility and front-end engineering and design (FEED) study services for its proposed 400,000 b/d Coega refinery known as Project Mthombo. Issue 152, 12 December 2008.more
US private equity firm to harness waste energy
Denham Capital, a US-based, energy and commodities-focused private equity firm, plans to invest up to $150m in Johannesburg-based BioTherm Energy, which develops, acquires, owns and operates waste to energy, renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in the 5MW-100MW range. Issue 151, 28 November 2008.more
GE signs service deal with Sasol
GE Energy has signed a 15-year service agreement with Sasol to provide monitoring and diagnostics for the synthetic fuels company’s new 280MW power plant in Secunda. Issue 151, 28 November 2008.more
Engen buys Total assets in Rwanda, Burundi, Guinea-Bissau
South Africa-based Engen Petroleum has completed the purchase of Total’s downstream operations in Guinea Bissau, Rwanda and Burundi. The agreement, signed on 31 July in Paris and effective from 19 November, sees Engen take over Total’s shareholding in Total Rwanda and in Total Burundi. Issue 151, 28 November 2008.more
Eskom secures $500m loan
Eskom has secured a $500m 20-year loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to help finance its capacity expansion programme (AE 149/11). Issue 150, 14 November 2008.more
Eskom prequalifies bidders for IPP programme
Eskom says it has prequalified 27 companies or consortia as potential independent power project developers under its multi-site base load independent power producer programme. Successful IPPs will sign long-term power purchase agreements with Eskom. Issue 149, 31 October 2008.more
PSA Group to use Elitheni’s coal
IPSA Group has reached agreement with Elitheni Coal to supply the coal for some 250MW of its initial power projects in the Eastern Cape. Issue 149, 31 October 2008.more
Eskom seeks state support
Eskom has turned to the government to act as the guarantor for existing and future debt. Eskom is seeking to raise around R150bn ($18.5bn) through bank borrowing and bond sales, most of which will be spent on new coal-fired power stations, although Eskom’s capital spending programme also includes a second nuclear power plant and new combined cycle gas-fired units. Issue 147, 4 October 2008.more
Exxaro to supply coal to Eskom’s Medupi plant
South Africa’s Exxaro Resources has signed an agreement with Eskom for the supply of 14.6m t/yr of coal over the next 40 years for the Medupi power station. Issue 147, 4 October 2008.more
Eskom seeks FGD technology
Eskom has invited bids for the supply of flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) equipment for its Kusile coal-fired power station near Witbank, in Mpumalanga province. Issue 147, 4 October 2008.more
Eskom warns on long-term coal supply outlook
The South African utility has warned that its coal needs run the risk of outstripping local supply within ten years, posing a fresh challenge to southern Africa’s energy industry, writes Our Cape Town Correspondent. Issue 146, 22 September 2008.more
Eskom secures Medupi financing
Eskom has secured an R2.8bn ($342m) export credit financing loan from Germany’s KfW-IPEX Bank towards the cost of the six boilers that the Hitachi Power consortium will supply for the new Medupi coal-fired power station. Issue 146, 22 September 2008.more
South Africa coal terminal under export pressure
The board of Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) will meet later this month to work out how it will handle additional coal exports from black-owned mining companies in 2009. Issue 145, 5 September 2008.more
PBMR demonstration plant contract awarded
The Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (Pty) Ltd’ company developing the PBMR has given a joint venture of Canada’s SNC Lavalin and South Africa’s Murray & Roberts the contract to provide engineering, procurement, project and construction management services for the Phase II demonstration plant (AE 116/9). Issue 145, 5 September 2008.more
Kentz wins Medupi contract
Kentz Group has won a R1.75bn ($250m)-plus contract for the procurement, fabrication and site installation of air-cooled condensers and equipment for the new Medupi Power Station in Limpopo Province (AE 132/7). Issue 145, 5 September 2008.more
PetroSA in Venezuela deal
South Africa and Venezuela have signed an energy co-operation deal that would give state oil company PetroSA access to Venezuela’s Orinoco oil fields. Issue 145, 5 September 2008.more
State funds for Eskom
The National Treasury has come to Eskom’s rescue, agreeing to bring forward the disbursement of a R60bn ($8bn) deeply subordinated loan and expressing its willingness to consider providing guarantees to enable the utility to access funding that would otherwise not be available (AE 139/24, 133/24). Issue 144, 1 August 2008.more
Eskom’s transmission plans shaped by generation decisions
One signal that Eskom’s plans to source power are not yet set in stone comes from analysis of its transmission options, with plans evolving for a high capacity EHV transmission system to form a backbone of high load transmission across South Africa – the so-called KV 765 super grid. Issue 143, 18 July 2008.more
JBIC loan for Eskom
The Japan Bank for International Cooperation has signed an untied loan worth up to ¥7.5bn ($71m) with Eskom Holdings Ltd. Issue 143, 18 July 2008.more
IPSA Group plans bigger market share
The UK’s IPSA Group, which last year became the first independent power generator to supply electricity in South Africa, says it is seeking to gain a “significant share” of the country’s power generation market within the next five years. Issue 142, 4 July 2008.more
Tariff hike is well below ‘credit watch negative’ Eskom’s target
Slightly later than expected, the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has sought to placate the very different, often conflicting, demands of building SA’s economy according to international benchmarks and protecting millions of poor consumers from the worst depredations of transition to a hard-knuckles market economy. Nersa on 18 June agreed a 13.3% average tariff increase for Eskom Holdings Ltd – a fraction of the 53% hike requested by the under-pressure utility, to enable it to meet rising costs and fund its badly-needed generation expansion programme. Issue 141, 20 June 2008.more
Eskom reports progress on generation build-up
With Eskom pushing for 4% annual average growth in generation between now and 2025, the South African utility is making progress towards adding capacity, general manager projects Braam Conradie said during Spintelligent’s African Utility Week in Cape Town (AE 139/24, 138/9). Issue 140, 6 June 2008.more
Darling wind farm opens
Independent power producer Darling Wind Power has opened a demonstration wind farm with four turbines that can supply 5.2MW of electricity (AE 138/12). All the electricity produced will be sold to the City of Cape Town under a long-term power purchase agreement. Issue 140, 6 June 2008.more
GMR to increase stake in Homeland
Indian infrastructure company GMR Group is set to pay $125m for an additional 40% stake in Canada’s Homeland Energy, which is developing three coal fields to supply local power and industry and for export. Issue 140, 6 June 2008.more
‘Humble’ Eskom is on the mend, but assailed by yet more bad news
There is a steady flow of positive news coming from Eskom, as the South African power giant seeks to restore its reputation after several very bad months. Key decisions on a new conventional nuclear power plant are expected within weeks (and possibly awarded to either Areva or Westinghouse by end-year), most major contracts have now been awarded for the massive new Medupi coal-fired plant, and within two months another 500MW of capacity will have been added to the 1,600MW already up and running from three return-to-service (RTS) coal-fired plants where work continues. Issue 139, 23 May 2008.more
Power projects and policy update: South Africa
Ahead of the government and ANC’s planned ‘energy summit’ to discuss the electricity supply crisis, African Energy’s latest South Africa power projects update shows a significant number of new and revised projects, as Eskom finally gets a generation expansion policy in place that takes account of rising demand. Issue 138, 9 May 2008.more
South Africa promotes domestic CCS research
South Africa is keen to promote research into carbon capture and storage, which will help it to exploit its huge CO2 storage capacity. It is also hoping to attract foreign investment alongside domestic private funds to finance a research centre to promote the technology, writes François Misser in Brussels. Issue 138, 9 May 2008.more
National energy summit to address crisis
The government and African National Congress (ANC) have agreed to set up a task team to prepare for an energy summit next month to discuss the power supply crisis. Issue 137, 25 April 2008.more
AES drops IPP plans as Eskom looks to price hikes to tackle supply crisis
Eskom is increasing its imports and has approved another major pumped storage project, but the medium-term supply situation remains very tight – and the prospects of drawing in new investment are not helped by the failure of the government’s planned independent power project. Issue 136, 11 April 2008.more
Foster Wheeler for CTL study
Sasol has selected Foster Wheeler South Africa to carry out a pre-feasibility study for a proposed new coal-to-liquids (CTL) facility known as Project Mafutha. Issue 136, 11 April 2008.more
SA power crisis forces review of smelter timing
Rio Tinto Alcan, key investor in the Coega industrial zone, is rethinking its timetable in the light of South Africa’s power crisis. But private power provider IPSA Group is confident it can meet its needs. Issue 135, 28 March 2008.more
Sekhukhune HPP approved
Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality (GSDM) in north-eastern South Africa has received approval to proceed with a multi-million dollar hydroelectric project in Limpopo Province following approval of an environmental impact assessment. Issue 135, 28 March 2008.more
French contract bonanza from Sarkozy visit
Eskom was a key beneficiary of the flurry of contracts whose announcement accompanied President Nicolas Sarkozy’s state visit in February. Issue 134, 7 March 2008.more
Concern at rand volatility
Currency volatility is adding to concerns about the economy’s ability to weather the power supply crisis, according to bankers canvassed by African Energy (AE 133/24, 132/1). Issue 134, 7 March 2008.more
Analysts recalibrate risk perceptions in wake of SA, Kenya events
If pessimists are right, it may come to be seen as a balmy period when the strong macroeconomic figures registered by a majority of economies, and the upturn in investor interest from fixed income assets to downstream hydrocarbons mega-projects, suggested that economic positives could now outweigh the perennial political risk factors when assessing African business – the trend recorded by African Energy in 2006-07 (AE 129/22, 120/1). Issue 134, 7 March 2008.more
Investors warm to SA-linked equities as markets assess fallout from Eskom crisis
Markets are warming to coal and other investments that can contribute to resolving southern Africa’s power crisis Issue 133, 22 February 2008.more
Murray& Roberts: Profit and loss potential
South Africa’s biggest engineering and construction group was widely expected to present strong H2 2007 results to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on 27 February, with diluted headline earnings per share (HEPS) expected to show an increase of 50%-60% over the 135 cents recorded in H2 2006; full-year HEPS (to 30 June 2008) was also expected to grow by 50%-60%. Issue 133, 22 February 2008.more
Parsons Brinckerhoff: Mining, SA growth focus as coal re-emerges as king
Engineering consultancy Parsons Brinckerhoff is building up its southern Africa and mining industry personnel, seeing a substantial business opportunity from coal-to-power and other minerals-related projects in the electricity-starved region. Issue 133, 22 February 2008.more
Investors sought for 3,000MW
Eskom has invited proposals from private investors to develop up to 3,000MW of new power generation capacity by June 2012. Issue 133, 22 February 2008.more
RFP for Koekenaap wind project
Eskom has issued a request for proposals for a commercial wind power generation facility and associated infrastructure. Issue 133, 22 February 2008.more
Markets and ‘developmental state’ pay for South Africa’s power crisis
South Africa and the wider Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) region were plunged into chronic power cuts this winter because ultimately the numbers didn’t add up: with reserve margins (the gap between useable installed capacity and demand) withering to dangerously low levels, rains in January further reduced the percentage of the 36,000MW generation capacity that Eskom could put into its grid. Issue 133, 22 February 2008.more
Global power financing patterns offer lessons for continent, as SA shifts from denial to anger
South Africa’s urgent requirement for power supply, shared by many other African economies where sustained growth has added to energy demand, will produce a range of responses – some of them pushing SA’s usually financially conservative leaderships towards private financing solutions. Further in-fighting can be expected in SA, and the global liquidity crunch will add to pressures, but all is not gloom for developers. Kevin Godier and Jon Marks scan global emerging project markets for keys to Africa’s future direction. Issue 132, 8 February 2008.more
Areva, Westinghouse bid for Nuclear 1 project
Two consortia led by US and French rivals Westinghouse and Areva have submitted bids to Eskom for the first of a series of planned nuclear power plants (AE 131/7, 116/9). Bids for the first 3,000MW-3,500MW plant, dubbed Nuclear 1, were submitted at the end of January. Issue 132, 8 February 2008.more
M&R wins Medupi, Bravo boiler contract
The Hitachi group awarded South African construction and engineering group Murray & Roberts the boiler construction contract for Eskom’s planned Medupi and Bravo coal-fired power plants. Issue 132, 8 February 2008.more
IPSA’s 1,600MW CCGT to supply Coega
UK-based developer IPSA Group Plc has signed a memorandum of co-operation with the South African government’s Central Energy Fund (CEF) to supply a power plant for the Coega Industrial Development Zone outside Port Elizabeth. Issue 132, 8 February 2008.more
Gas compression station
Sasol, iGas and Compania Mozambicana de Gasoduto are building a gas compression station to facilitate a 20% expansion of natural gas delivery from Mozambique to South Africa by the end of 2009. Issue 132, 8 February 2008.more
Eskom says tariff hike too little
With capacity constraints causing load-shedding at home and export shortfalls to neighbouring countries, Eskom has expressed disappointment at the tariff increase approved by National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa). Eskom said Nersa had approved a price increase of 14.2%, compared to the 18.7% sought by the utility. Issue 131, 25 January 2008.more
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