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Cairo has got much of what it wanted from the COP27 climate-fest in Sharm El Sheikh, with $85bn of green hydrogen and renewable power mega-deals that have focused attention and foreign investment on a centrepiece of President Sisi’s economic strategy, Egypt’s energy hub concept. African Energy has analysed proposals from nine investment partners to calculate how much wind and solar generation capacity will be needed to produce green ammonia equivalent to 10% of current global production, which Egypt says it is ‘harvesting’, writes John Hamilton.

COP26 opened with high-minded speeches and a welter of public and private sector commitments, as dozens of African nations said they would accelerate their own decarbonisation. Governments called for existing pledges to tackle environmental disaster to be met, underpinning a ‘just transition’ in which poorer economies aren’t penalised by big emitters’ plans to cut carbon.

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s aim of using COP27 to bolster Egypt’s credentials as a regional green energy hub have seen deals on multi-gigawatt wind farms and the commissioning of the first green hydrogen (GH2) pilot project in Africa. But tricky compromises will be needed to turn some of the heady plans into reality.

Analysis of procurement trends recorded on the African Energy Live Data platform shows that capacity procured through competitive auctions should add at least 15.1GW by 2027, with solar and natural gas adding an estimated 4.4GW and 4.3GW respectively, while wind and hybrid power will also make significant additions to the continent’s generation mix, writes Ajay Ubhi.

Brazzaville has accelerated its long-mooted policy of offering public/private partnership (PPP) concessions to run infrastructure, with deals agreed for international companies to run the Moukoukoulou, Imboulou, Liouosso and Djoué hydroelectric power (HEP) dams and other facilities, including major highway Route Nationale 1.

Centamin on 26 July announced the completion of preliminary work to expand its solar PV plant at the Sukari gold mine, near Marsa Alam on Egypt's Red Sea Coast. Centamin also said that qualifying tenders for Sukari’s connection to the grid had been received.

Biomass is often used as a catch-all term, but there are several types of feedstock and important differences between them. African Energy examines the different types of biomass.

East African Power (EAP) has taken an 85% stake in two solar photovoltaic projects, the Kolwezi and Likasi independent power producers (IPPs), each with 133MWp capacity in Katanga province.

Work at the 130MW Kandadji hydroelectric power (HEP) project has been halted, after developer China Gezhouba Group Company (CGGC) declared force majeure on 7 August following the 26 July military takeover of the country.

Amea Power has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with state utility Electricité de Djibouti (EDD) that will see the Dubai-based compnay become the first independent power producer (IPP) to develop a solar project in Djibouti.

Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed Northam Platinum is weighing up plans to add more solar PV capacity at its Booysendal, Eland and Zondereinde mines, while also procuring more diesel generators, as it seeks to reduce reliance on the national grid.

Canada’s Ivanhoe Mines is expanding its use of hydroelectric power (HEP) wheeled across state utility Société Nationale d’Electricité (Snel)’s grid to support its mining activities in Democratic Republic of Congo’s Haut-Katanga province, which include the world-scale Kamoa-Kakula copper mine.

The Lomé-headquartered West African Development Bank (Boad) has approved a CFA15bn ($24.2m) loan for the 30MWp Niakhar solar PV plant, which includes a battery energy storage system.

Independent power producer (IPP) Kaboni Energy has commissioned its first Burundian mini-grid pilot system in the rural Giharo, Rutana province. The development is noteworthy for its funding model, which Kaboni calls a community energy co-operative (CEC).

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