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Equatorial Guinea’s 80-year-old leader President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo faces political difficulties at home and abroad. Sham election accusations from the exiled opposition, independent analysts and Washington DC have marked his latest success, with a near unanimous vote reported following the 20 November election.

Turkish concessionaire Aksa Enerji has formally returned the 50MW Djéno gas-powered plant to service. Aksa has a 30-year concession to operate the plant and expand it to 100MW over the concession period.

Graphite mining in Madagascar has over a century of history, but production has fallen to low levels. However, two firms have ambitious expansion plans that are expected to markedly increase output in the near future.

A 12MWac capacity solar PV plant for the Caledonia Mining Corporation-operated Blanket Mine has started operations. The grid-tied plant is expected to provide about 27% of the mine’s electricity needs.

UK major BP reported a $2bn gain from part of its efforts towards “high-grading its portfolio” in its Q3 2022 results relating to the formation of its Angola-focused 50/50 joint venture with Eni, Azule Energy, which started operations in August.

Morocco has made much of its response to Algeria’s withdrawal from the Maghreb-Europe Gas (GME) pipeline, which delivers natural gas to the kingdom and Spain. An investment in re-engineering the GME has allowed the government to buy LNG landed in Spain to be supplied to the 385MW Tahaddart and 470MW Aïn Beni Mathar combined cycle plants.

Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded its local and foreign currency long-term issuer ratings and foreign currency senior unsecured debt rating to B3 from B2 as financial and capital outflows exceed the current account surplus, further eroding foreign exchange reserves.

Contracts have been awarded to build solar PV power plants at seven tertiary institutions under the Energising Education Programme (EEP)’s second phase. The EEP is a World Bank-funded programme aimed at improving energy access in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Nine universities are slated to receive support in phase one.

Too often ignored except in times of extreme crisis, Lesotho is looking to emerge from years of political instability and economic malaise under previous coalition governments, as the Basotho population counts on newly-elected tycoon Prime Minister Sam Matekane to usher in transformative change.

Development of the 10MW Achada Mostarda wind power plant on Santiago Island has been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

More than $20bn worth of merger and acquisition deals have been finalised so far this year, with buyers increasingly looking to target producing assets to capitalise on high energy prices, writes James Gavin.

The launch of a project to bring renewable power generated in the southern part of Morocco directly to the UK is one of five high-voltage direct current (HVDC) interconnections now planned between North Africa and Europe. Alongside the Moroccan Xlinks project, similar schemes in Tunisia and Egypt are united by the common conceptual approach of enabling European countries to replace the 60% of primary energy now imported as fossil fuels. However, the underlying political and commercial motivations, as well as the technological details, differ in each case.

The World Bank on 29 June approved $43m of additional financing for Gambia’s Electricity Restoration and Modernisation Project, which aims to support the country’s economic and political transition after 22 years of autocratic rule under former president Yahya Jammeh.The original project received $41m of funding in May 2018. The bank said the additional financing, in the form of a grant from the International Development Association, aims to scale up activities under the project, address a funding gap of $5m and finance new activities.

Beco, Somalia’s main electricity supplier, has announced the commissioning of an 8MWp solar PV plant in Mogadishu. The commissioning of the company’s second solar PV park, which currently provides electricity four hours a day, has already helped achieve its primary aim of cutting the cost of electricity in the Somali capital by reducing the use of diesel generators. According to Beco’s chief engineer, Mohamud Farah, the commissioning of the Mogadishu solar PV plant has seen the cost of power fall from $0.49 to $0.36/kWh.

China’s Sinosoar signed an agreement on 12 March with the state Ethiopian Electric Utility (EEU) to design, build and operate a solar-diesel mini-grid in Bokolomayo Village in the south of Somali Regional State.