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Zimbabwe is highly unlikely to eradicate the crony capitalist structures that have favoured the Mugabe clan and other Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu-PF) grandees any time soon. But the president’s departure could favour a measured transition, building on initiatives to normalise the economy undertaken by regime officials such as Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Mangudya and Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) managing director Noah Fari Gwariro. Even at 92 years old, it seems imprudent to write off President Robert Mugabe, whose ruthless political cunning has seen off international sanctions and domestic challenges.

Less concerned about growing political tensions than about geology suggesting the West African Transform Margin extends further to the north-west than previously thought, Mauritania is emerging from the doldrums to attract IOCs looking for the next big frontier

Flex LNG Nigerian project; Chinese CTL plans; Total/CNOOC New energies co-operation

The government has revived controversial plans for the 2,100MW Stiegler’s Gorge dam in the Selous Game Reserve, despite environmentalists’ concerns about the potential impact on the World Heritage site. Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn visited Tanzania in March and agreed to send a team of experts to advise on the project, planned for the Stiegler’s Gorge canyon on the Rufiji River in southern Tanzania. A delegation led by Ethiopian minister of water, irrigation and electricity Sileshi Bekele arrived at the end of June to meet Tanzanian officials.

Société Nationale d’Electricité du Burkina has again extended the deadline for bids for the turnkey construction of two solar photovoltaic (PV) projects totalling 30MW to 20 May. The previous deadlines were 29 April, and 28 February. Bids are sought for the construction of a 20MW plant near Koudougou in Boulkiemdé province in the Centre-Ouest region (lot 1) and a 10MW facility in the city of Kaya, the capital of the province of Sanmatenga in the Centre-Nord region (lot 2), as well as their connection to the national grid.

Regular brownouts in the capital and a more precarious position still in many provinces are driving the authorities towards an ambitious generation development programme

The Chamber of Mines of Zambia (CMZ) has launched legal action challenging an Energy Regulation Board (ERB) decision to raise electricity tariffs for mining companies (AE 279/8). Court documents named the applicants as Lumwana Mining Company, Kansanshi Mining, Lubambe Copper Mines, Mopani Copper Mines, Chibuluma Mines, NFC Africa Mining and Chambishi Metals.

While Gazprom has not entirely withdrawn from the Kudu gas-to-power project, news that the stake has changed hands highlights tension between the Russian major and Namibian authorities, writes Michael Wooldridge

In a fresh blow to efforts to turn round South Africa’s struggling power sector, Eskom has been plunged into chaos by a public row between chief executive Jacob Maroga and chairman Bobby Godsell.

Two consortia have been selected to build, own and operate two solar photovoltaic (PV) power plants with a total capacity of 20MW, under the pilot Global Energy Transfer Feed-in Tariffs (GET FiT) programme (AE 289/8). Uganda’s Simba Telecom in partnership with Italy’s Building Energy and a consortium of Access Power MEA of the United Arab Emirates and Spain’s TSK Electronica will build the country’s first solar projects in the Tororo and Soroti districts in eastern Uganda, at a combined cost of $32.5m, the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) announced on 10 December.

The newsflow out of South Africa is unprecedented in its volume and the seriousness of the allegations in its content. The run-up to the African National Congress (ANC) elections, which will take place during the 54th National Conference in Kimberley on 16-20 December and are likely to decide the next president of the country, has seen a firestorm of accusations and political manoeuvring with the energy sector at its heart.

Office National des Hydrocarbures et des Mines (Onhym) announced the signing on 12 June of a two-year reconnaissance contract with ConocoPhillips Morocco Ventures for the onshore Mesorif area in northern Morocco. Bringing in a US major, even at the earliest stage of the exploration process, is a coup for Onhym, whose director-general, Amira Benkhadra, signed the agreement in a virtual online ceremony. ConocoPhillips’ arrival further underlines the growing interest in north-eastern Morocco’s potential, with a number of London-listed companies involved in gas projects.

The confusion in Ghana’s energy sector has claimed another victim, with Tullow Oil slashing its production forecast, citing lower-than-expected gas offtake. Tullow had already cut its 2019 production forecast in July and again in November, but announced on 9 December that output would be just 70,000-80,000 b/d in 2020 and around 70,000 in 2021-23, down from 87,000 b/d this year. Chief executive Paul McDade and exploration director Angus McCoss resigned “by mutual agreement and with immediate effect”.

Germany’s KfW has agreed to extend a €25m grant to the Ministry of Economics and Finance for the Global Energy Transfer Feed-in-Tariff (Get FiT) programme in Mozambique. The programme will promote private sector investment in solar PV systems including battery storage of up to 32MW, KfW announced on 4 September. The project will support government efforts to supply the entire population with electricity by 2030. At present, only just under one third of Mozambicans have access to electricity.

BP on 12 February announced the start of gas production from the Atoll Phase One project. The project, in the North Damietta concession in the East Nile Delta, is now producing 350mcf/d of gas and 10,000 b/d of condensate. Gas production from the field is supplied to Egypt’s national grid. Atoll is the first new project to come into production for BP in 2018, and follows start-ups last year at the giant Zohr field and the Taurus and Libra fields in the West Nile Delta development.