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Environmental affairs minister Bomo Edna Molewa has approved an environmental authorisation for the 557MW Thabametsi coal project, despite an assessment showing the project will have a “high social cost”. The North Gauteng High Court ordered Molewa to reconsider environmental authorisation for the project last year because a climate change impact assessment had not been carried out. Earthlife Africa Johannesburg said it would return to court to challenge the latest decision.Savannah Environmental undertook the climate assessment on behalf of Thabametsi’s sponsors.

ARCH Emerging Markets Partners Limited’s Africa Renewable Power Fund (ARPF) has made its first investment since its launch in 2019. Further transactions are expected in Q2, barring delays resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. ARPF will invest $16.5m in commercial and industrial (C&I) solar company CrossBoundary Energy (CBE) to support the expansion of its operations. ARCH is the first institutional investor in CBE, which was the first fund established to finance commercial solar systems specifically in Africa.

Prospects for revival of a project to build an interconnector between Mozambique and Malawi have been boosted with the presentation of an economic feasibility study for the scheme in Maputo on 27 June. The project dates back to 1998 when an initial memorandum was signed. Studies were completed and financing put together for the project in 2007, but it ran into political difficulties as relations between the two states soured in the later part of Bingu wa Mutharika’s presidency.

Denham Capital’s Themis Group announced on 26 May that it has issued full notice to proceed with construction of the 44MW Singrobo-Ahouaty hydropower plant on the Bandama River. The €195m ($213m) project is being developed by Themis, the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), and Ivoire Hydro Energy Holding, which is majority owned by local entrepreneur and engineer Ekolan Alain Etty. The plant is expected to begin operating in March 2023.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) on 26 April approved a €115m ($152m) financial package for the 300MW Lake Turkana wind power project. The AfDB is mandated lead arranger for the project and expects to raise more than €127m senior debt and a further €58m subordinated debt once the project is officially launched in May.

Private equity firm Denham Capital’s Africa-focused independent power company Endeavor Energy has signed a joint development agreement with GE and France’s Finagestion to develop the Ghana 1000 Project gas-to-power initiative to deliver more than 10GW to the grid. The first phase of the project, which will include the construction of a floating storage and regasification unit for the importation of liquefied natural gas (LNG), will produce 360MW in simple cycle mode by early 2017, according to a joint statement from the companies. When fully complete in early 2018, it will generate more than 540MW in combined cycle mode.

Already interconnected to Senegal and Mauritania, Mali plans to reinforce its transmission network so it can play a central role in the West African Power Pool by carrying power from Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana into the energy-starved Sahel, writes Thalia Griffiths.

China has signed an agreement with Gabon to lend CFAfr37.2bn ($83.1m) towards the cost of the Grand Poubara scheme. The loan deal, signed on 25 January by Finance Minister Paul Toungui and Chinese ambassador Hxue Jinwei provides for a loan, bearing 3% interest over a 20-year term, with a grace period of seven years.

Plans to export hydropower to supply the region has won the support of donors, despite the controversies surrounding the dams themselves and concerns of neighbouring states Despite dam controversies, donors back grid links for Ethiopia’s power vision

National Water and Electricity Company (Nawec) signed a two-year power purchase agreement with Turkey’s Karpower on 12 February for 30MW of short-term rental power. Local news reports quoted energy minister Fafa Sanyang as saying the contract was part of a short-term plan to improve capacity, while Nawec rehabilitates and repairs plants and implements existing projects to tackle energy constraints.

More evidence is expected from UK authorities and South African sources as part of the investigation into the use of the UK’s banking system by the Gupta brothers, Lord Hain of Neath – Peter Hain – told African Energy. Letters from Hain to the chancellor, Phillip Hammond, last month instigated investigations by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), National Crime Agency, and the Serious Fraud Office. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has begun investigating in the United States and evidence has been submitted to the European Union, although an investigation has not yet begun.

Outgoing president Laurent Gbagbo has significantly raised the stakes in his conflict with Alassane Ouattara, the winner of November’s presidential election, by requisitioning key assets including the national electricity dispatching centre

Diesel then grid options for Mayoko iron ore scheme; MHI/Toyota Tsusho win Abu Qir order; WDEPC Transformer supply tender; Lebanon to import 450MW as gas supplies fall short; Chinese to build hydro plant; ONE reports big upside from GMT+1; Refinery scheme to include 500MW unit; Minister lines up to set out sector policy

Egypt has placed its renewable energy target in line with Europe’s, aiming for 20% of national power demand to be met from wind, solar and hydro by 2020. Speaking at the European Union-Mediterranean-Gulf Renewable Energy Conference on in Brussels on 9 October, Electricity and Energy

President Goodluck Jonathan’s 13 December budget speech included incentives for developers, with the federal government proposing that power equipment and machinery should attract zero duty