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British American Tobacco Nigeria (BAT) has commissioned a solar PV plant at its Ibadan factory.

Independent power producer (IPP) Serengeti Energy has commissioned the first phase of its Nkhotakota solar photovoltaic plant in eastern Malawi.

Equatorial Guinea is seeing more dynamism in its upstream oil and gas sector, with independents planning drilling programmes across a number of blocks. Further phases are being planned for the Regional Gas Mega Hub project, amid renewed interest in natural gas resources, writes James Gavin.

The African Development Bank and Korea Eximbank will jointly provide $114m to finance the national electricity grid system and resolve transmission gaps in western Kenya.

There are pockets of progress in building infrastructure across Democratic Republic of Congo, with commercial operators and development finance institutions supporting a range of projects. But with eastern regions traumatised by violence and an uncertain election looming in December, the country remains as challenging an environment as ever, writes Jon Marks.

Australian Stock Exchange (ASX)-listed Lindian Resources has confirmed the timeframe for the expected commissioning of its Kangankunde rare earths project in Malawi. 

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed triumphantly announced on 10 September that the fourth and final filling of the $4.2bn Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (Gerd) reservoir had been completed, raising the 74km3 reservoir’s water level to 625 metres; last year’s third filling had brought levels to 600 metres.

National oil company Sonatrach has started natural gas production at three Gourar Basin fields, as part of the second phase of its South West Gas Project (SWGP).

Ivanhoe Mines has opted for commercial and industrial (C&I) supply from an independent power producer (IPP) for its Platreef project in Limpopo province, becoming the latest large South African offtaker to respond in this way to the woeful performance of utility Eskom.

German development bank KfW has offered a €200m ($214m) loan to Eskom to help the state utility  improve transmission grids in the Northern and Western Cape, as western nations look to step up their support for South Africa’s creaking electricity system.

Cairo is pressing on with the implementation of its existing electricity supply industry (ESI) strategy in the face of severe headwinds. Some major reforms, including energy sector liberalisation, are certain to be delayed, but the authorities continue to drive big ticket projects forward – and to pile on new ones – while striving to keep international investors on-side in a highly precarious financial situation.

Egyptians are hoping for cooler weather and with it the end of severe rolling power outages which have caused difficulties throughout the summer. However, the social and economic legacies of the electricity supply crisis will outlast the ferocious Mediterranean heatwave, which has provided the government’s only – but far from satisfying – explanation for why the outages happened, writes John Hamilton.

A joint venture of British engineering firm Enshore Subsea and Belgian hydraulic specialist Herbosch Kiere has been awarded a $200m engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to build 17.5km of 220kV land and submarine lines from Bel Air in Dakar to Cap des Biches.

The issue leads with Egypt, where severe rolling power outages throughout the summer have left many wondering how the electricity supply industry (ESI) could fail, given the state has spent billions of dollars commissioning sufficient generation capacity for a reserve margin that is approximately double the peak load. African Energy focuses on DR Congo where the are pockets of progress – with commercial operators and development finance institutions supporting a range of projects – but the environment remains challenging with an uncertain election looming in December. African Energy also looks at the implications of the trial of two former senior Lundin Energy executives – accused of complicity in war crimes in Sudan two decades ago – which began in Stockholm in early September. Power coverage leads with Kenya where the  AfDB and Korea Eximbank have agreed to provide finance for the national electricity grid system and resolve transmission gaps. There is also an update on South Africa, where trading and import/export licences have now been granted for the new National Transmission Company of South Africa (NTCSA). Oil and gas coverage leads with Equatorial Guinea, which is seeing more dynamism in its upstream oil and gas sector, with independents planning drilling programmes across a number of blocks. The African Energy View reflects on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (Gerd), where filling was completed in mid-September. The Abiy government believes power now available could enable a wave of economic development in heavily-indebted Ethiopia, but investors will be wary of continued conflict.

Trading in Afentra’s shares resumed on 18 September, as the London AIM-listed company pushed on with plans to expand its interests in the Group Sonangol-operated shallow-water blocks 3/05 and 3/05A.