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State utility Société Nationale de l’Electricité et du Gaz’s Sonelgaz-Energies Renouvelables (S-EnR) has announced the winning bids for its 2GW solar photovoltaic project. Once delivered, the project would quadruple S-EnR’s installed solar capacity. Algerian President Abdelmajid Tebboune has told Sonelgaz to install 15GW of renewable energy by 2030, of which the 2GW tender is the first phase.

Kosmos Energy has taken an operated stake in the 25tcf offshore Yakaar-Teranga gas field, following BP’s exit, and says it intends to export up to 3m t/yr of LNG. Longstanding plans to supply local offtakers through a new pipeline are also set to continue. Meanwhile the cross-border Senegal-Mauritania LNG development continues, but progress could be held up as the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) project’s FPSO awaits repairs off Durban, writes Marc Howard.

The long-delayed plans to develop a 600MW plant on the Cunene River to supply both Angola and Namibia have been expanded, with a main 860MW dam to be built with a 18MW balancing dam. Solar PV and pumped-storage components may also be added, writes Martin Burdett.

UK-headquartered independents are leading the way in developing Morocco’s onshore and offshore gas resources, as the government seeks to boost domestic supplies and reduce its reliance on expensive imports via Spain. Among recent activity, Chariot has secured environmental approval for its 1.5tcf offshore Anchois development, writes James Gavin.

Some pessimistic observers are heralding the end of the independent power producer (IPP) era, with the potential demise of actors and project models that have dominated private sector investment in electricity generation since the 1990s. With criticism of IPP costs providing grist to populist mills across sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) – feeding into narratives of western ‘exploitation’ and anger over rising living costs – politicians have been calling for change, while developers are finding market conditions ever more challenging.

This report collects togther a series of articles on Uganda's energy sector that were published in early November 2023 as part of African Energy's Issue 494 reporting. The package also includes maps focused on the oil and gas sector and power infrastructure.

The Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy (Masen) will soon launch a tender for a 3GW, 1,600km high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line to take power from renewable energy plants in Dakhla, in the disputed Sahara region, up to Kenitra and Tangier in the north.

With first oil expected from Lake Albert by early 2026, an array of associated infrastructure is under development, including the controversial Eacop pipeline. Shunned by western financiers, Chinese debt is expected to rescue Eacop, with a financing package due to be finalised in the coming weeks. Kampala has also signalled its appetite to intervene in energy markets by taking a majority stake in the Kabalega refinery, writes Marc Howard in Hoima.

With oil field developments proceeding at pace, the Kampala government has signalled its intention to play a more robust role in economic management, with plans to renationalise the electricity distribution network and take an expensive majority stake in the Kabalega refinery development. Meanwhile financing for the Eacop pipeline is expected to close soon, with Chinese lenders stepping in where western financiers have refused to go, writes Marc Howard, recently in Kampala and Hoima.

Published November 2023, this map illustrates major violent events in Mali between 22 October 2022 and 20 October 2023. The security incidents are marked with an indication of reported fatality numbers. The base map shows the location of power infrastructure, including generation sites and power transmission and distribution lines. Power generation facilities that are operating, under construction or planned are shown by type – including liquid fuels, natural gas, hybrid, hydroelectricity, solar PV and biomass/biogas. Generation sites are marked with different sized circles to show sites of 1-9MW, 10-99MW and 100-499MW. Existing and future transmission and distribution lines are shown ranging from 90kV and under to 330kV. 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.

Russian state-owned nuclear power company Rosatom has signed an agreement with the Malian government to cooperate on “peaceful uses of atomic energy”. Following Colonel Assimi Goïta’s seizure of power in August 2020, Moscow has been a strong backer of the regime, as demonstrated by its scuppering of an United Nations Security Council resolution in August that would have renewed sanctions on Bamako.

Ara Petroleum Tanzania (APT) has confirmed the completion of its acquisition of an additional 25% interest in the Ruvuma production-sharing agreement (PSA) from London AIM-listed Scirocco Energy.

Security is swiftly deteriorating in Mali, with security forces and their allies from the Russian Wagner mercenary group struggling to contain the jihadist insurgency and renewed attacks from a coalition of Tuareg-dominated northern separatist groups. The rapid escalation is reflected in Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (Acled) data, which shows 206 fatalities from armed conflict or political violence from 1-20 October alone.

Were projects assessed solely on their economic and social impact, the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (Eacop) and Lake Albert would probably be widely praised. Uganda needs both the energy and investment the projects bring. But the projects have drawn fierce criticism from environmental campaigners and NGOs, in Uganda and beyond in a concerted, high-profile campaign that has registered successes.

Published November 2023, this map focuses on the upstream oil and gas activity in the Lake Albert region of Uganda and the route of the planned East African crude oil pipeline (Eacop). Block operators and oil and gas fields are marked, with the boundaries of exploration and production licences shown alongside discoveries that are under appraisal. The planned route of the Eacop pipeline is shown as it passes through Uganda to the Tanzania coast at Tanga. Associated downstream infrastructure  is also shown including tanker terminals and refineries. An inset focuses on the planned oil refinery and infrastructure at the Kabalega Industrial Complex. A text panel provides details of Lake Albert developers, contractors, shareholders, insurers and financiers. The map is available as a PDF file using eps graphics, meaning that there is no loss of resolution as the file is enlarged.