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Vaalco Energy’s purchase of Svenska Petroleum Exploration will give the US indie a 27.4% interest in Block CI-40, which holds the producing Baobab field offshore Côte d’Ivoire, in a deal that further reduces beleaguered Saudi-Ethiopian tycoon Sheikh Mohammed Al-Amoudi’s business empire.

An arm of public utility Rwanda Energy Group is seeking contractors to build a substation at Bugesera Industrial Park.

Hopes that a buyer would emerge to take over Morocco’s mothballed Samir refinery have not been fulfilled, while arbitration proceedings enter a sixth year over Mohammed Hussein Al-Amoudi’s controversial asset in Mohammedia.

An AfDB grant-funded project will rehabilitate and expand electricity provision in Bossaso city as Somalia looks to boost electricity provision.

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has signed a joint development agreement for a solar PV plant with Toronto-headquartered SkyPower Global in what could be a ground-breaking project for state utility Société Nationale d’Electricité (Snel) – whose record on project delivery has generally been poor.

A degree of pressure has been lifted from President William Ruto, as his government secured $1.65bn from a dollar eurobond, as well as over $1bn from multilaterals, allowing Nairobi to avert the threat of default on its big repayment due in June. The shilling has emerged stronger, but the economy remains fragile, while the electricity supply industry is in need of a significantly improved performance. President Ruto is focused on reducing the cost of electricity and has devised a three-point plan to invest in transmission and distribution, develop LNG import facilities and accelerate geothermal power. His government may also try to lower end-user tariffs by slowing down the granting of PPAs or putting pressure on the regulator.  

The economic logic of the subsidy cuts, devaluation and other reforms enacted after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took over on Aso Rock in mid-2023 was clear: the fuel subsidy alone was costing some $10bn/yr, risking state insolvency. But the consequences of Tinubu’s reforms have caused immense difficulties for a majority of Nigeria's estimated 226m population, as the price of staples soars.

Kenya has put in place a green hydrogen framework giving impetus to a growing number of private sector projects that could drive capital-intensive post-carbon industries. African Energy rounds up the renewable energy-driven projects that are making the running in Kenya’s early-stage GH2 economy.

Milele Energy – part-owner of the Lake Turkana wind farm – has been hiring as the Nairobi-headquartered IPP developer it prepares to expand its African project portfolio.

Revised March 2024, this map provides a detailed view of energy infrastructure across Kenya. The locations of power generation facilities that are operating, under construction or planned are shown by type – including liquid fuels, gas and liquid fuels, coal, geothermal, hybrid, hydroelectricity, solar PV, wind and biomass/biogas. Generation sites are marked with different sized circles to show sites of 3-9MW, 10-99MW, 100-499MW and 500MW and above. Existing and future transmission and distribution lines are shown ranging from 132kV to 500kV. Actual and planned cross-border interconnectors are also shown including lines to Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda. The map also shows the location of the South Lokichar oil fields and planned and existing oil and gas infrastructure including pipelines, gas processing plants and tanker terminals. Power generation data was drawn from our African Energy Live Data platform, which contains project level detail on power plants and projects across Africa. The map is presented as a PDF file using eps graphics, meaning that there is no loss of resolution as the file is enlarged.

The seven memoranda of understanding signed by the Egyptian government on 28 February show new tax incentives are attracting interest. The MoUs add a number of substantial names to the roster of companies planning green hydrogen schemes, but less well-known names and local players are also on the list of those speculating on Egypt’s GH2 potential.

The sale by Denmark’s Investment Fund for Developing Countries of a minority stake in the successful Lake Turkana IPP to a fund managed by BlackRock shows big institutional investors can be attracted to sub-Saharan renewables – and the returns that can be made by those willing to shoulder early-stage risks.

Weighed down by financial and geopolitical risks, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s administration continues to push its green hydrogen (GH2) agenda - including the signing of seven new agreements. It is a risky proposition but, if schemes can be proved bankable, tens of billions of dollars of investment could transform Egypt’s economic prospects. John Hamilton looks at who is involved and where GH2 megaprojects have got to so far.

For Egypt, the development of green hydrogen production capacity is not just an interesting economic sideline that has emerged out of the global push to achieve net-zero, but a potential lifeline for the economy. Officials have put in place a governance infrastructure and fiscal incentives in the hope of making the most of the GH2 opening.

Sasol South Africa and Air Liquide have signed a third power purchase agreement (PPA) with Enel Green Power RSA for wind power supply to their site in Mpumalanga province.