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While many see doing business in Democratic Republic of Congo as problematic, Africa Finance Corporation is pushing ahead on a trio of schemes involving renewable energy, critical minerals and infrastructure, helped by its status as an African multilateral in which the DRC government is a shareholder.

Low rainfall in Guinea has led to yet another round of loadshedding and, in turn, widespread protests and deadly violence. Interim President Mamady Doumbouya is keen to end loadshedding and stoke the economy before holding delayed elections in 2025, but a small pipeline of projects raises questions about how soon new capacity can be brought online, writes Marc Howard.

Rehabilitation of the 178MW turbine at Inga II, along with plans for up to 210MW from on-site generators to tackle grid instability and increased electricity imports from Zambia are all on track, according to Ivanhoe Mines, as the Canadian operator works to provide sufficient power to Democratic Republic of Congo’s strategic Kamoa-Kakula copper mine.

DPA Southern Africa has broken ground on the Bloemfontein solar PV plant in Free State, which will supply power to Africa Data Centre sites in Cape Town and Johannesburg.

In a significant boost to Zambia’s installed capacity, Copperbelt Energy Corporation’s Itimpi solar PV plant has come online in Garneton, Kitwe district.

Just over a year after Infinity Power acquired Lekela Power to create the largest renewable energy company in Africa, the Cairo-based developer is close to signing a power purchase agreement for a proposed 200MW wind plant close to Lekela’s existing 250MW West Bakr wind farm. There are also plans to expand Lekela’s Taiba N’Diaye wind plant in Senegal and to compete for projects in South Africa.

Canadian miner Lucara Diamond Corporation has concluded a feasibility study that paves the way for the construction of a utility-scale solar PV plant and battery storage energy system to supply power to its Karowe mine.

Electricity sector reform is high among new Liberian President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s much-trailed ‘100 day deliverables’, but the challenges of delivering improved services remain enormous in an industry still impacted by years of mismanagement and graft. State utility LEC has improved its performance, funding for new interconnections offers hope of more imports and there are rumours that a powership could provide short-term supply, writes Marc Howard.

A proposal to add 300MW of solar PV in a Greater Cotonou industrial zone would reshape the small West African economy’s power sector if implemented, but analysis of the African Energy Live Data platform suggests a more incremental approach will be necessary given Benin’s rocky record of project implementation, alternative GTP ambitions and the sheer size of what is proposed compared to operating capacity.

Construction of the colossal Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (Gerd) is slated to be completed this year, marking the end of one of the continent’s largest and longest-running infrastructure projects. However, it has come at the cost of heightened animosity with Egypt and Sudan.

The addition of 3GW of solar power generation capacity over the next two years will be the first substantial shift in Algeria’s gas-dependent energy mix in decades – and is intended as the first step in a programme to add 15GW of solar capacity by 2035 – but coming after years of false dawns, the government’s track record raises significant doubts about whether the new vision is achievable, writes John Hamilton.

The 14MWp Arsenal solar PV plant has been commissioned, according to French developer GreenYellow, which signed a deal with the Central Electricity Board (CEB) to develop the plant in March 2022.

Saudi operator Acwa Power said the Noor 3 CSP plant at Ouarzazate would be closed until November after a leak in its hot molten salts tank used to store energy.

Climate Fund Managers and Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund have invested $18m in UK-based Konexa to finance the launch of its renewable energy trading platform, with Nigerian Breweries the first customer. Konexa initially plans to wheel power across the national grid to two Nigerian Breweries’ facilities.

Climate Fund Managers has provided capital for waste-to-energy developer Bio2Watt Energy Holdings’ biogas projects in South Africa, including expansion of the 4.8MW Bronkhorstspruit plant.