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President Paul Biya, who has celebrated his 90th birthday and will soon have completed 41 years in power, takes a hands-off approach to presiding over Cameroon, whose domestic divisions continue to fuel regional conflicts while international supporters help to underpin the economy, writes Paul Melly.

The reshuffle and apparent downgrade of oil minister Gabriel Obiang Lima has brought a close aide of President Teodoro Obiang, former national company GEPetrol head Antonio Oburu Ondo, into the Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons. The controversial new minister is also close to Obiang’s favoured son Teodorin, who is ever more strongly placed to eventually replace the octogenarian president in Equatorial Guinea’s most critical succession battle.

Following an explosive report alleging widespread fraud at one of India’s largest conglomerates the share price of Adani Group companies plummeted on the Indian stock exchange, in an affair that could yet have implications for a proposed 10GW renewable power and green hydrogen project in Morocco.

The government’s dissolution of Power Market Ltd (PML) signals further disarray in Malawi’s power sector. Some insiders and developers who spoke to African Energy didn’t lament the single-buyer’s demise, but serious macroeconomic difficulties pose severe challenges for an industry as the power crisis continues, writes Marc Howard.

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s re-election as African National Congress leader, and with it the right to lead the governing ANC in the 2024 presidential elections, has deep implications for the South African energy industry and wider economy – some of them very negative, as Eskom struggles with a legacy of corruption in a public sector prone to mismanagement, write Tonderayi Mukeredzi with Jon Marks.

The UK Court of Appeal found against the campaigning group Friends of the Earth in a mid-January ruling on UK government support for the project. However, there are still many obstacles for those seeking to raise finance from western sources for Sub-Saharan hydrocarbons projects.

The Julius Nyerere hydroelectric power project has passed another significant milestone with the impounding and first water filling of the main dam on Rufiji River. African Energy takes a closer look at a project that on completion promises a major hike in Tanzania’s generation capacity.

Switzerland-headquartered commodities giant Glencore said in early December it had reached an agreement with Democratic Republic of Congo under which it will pay $180m to cover present and future claims arising from alleged corruption between 2007-18.

The ground-breaking power purchase agreement signed by independent power producer Azura Power in 2013 is again being targeted by a National Assembly probe. Azura has been widely seen as a model for private investment in the electricity supply industry, but pressure continues as politicians seek a way out of a deal they see as too costly, writes Adaora Elemide in Abuja.

Perenco’s activities in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been the focus of fresh criticism. A report issued in early November by Investigate Europe, EIF and Disclose alleged that Perenco was  responsible for 167 pollution incidents and huge methane emissions.

After years of futile exploration, President Muhammadu Buhari has announced the discovery of oil in Bauchi and Gombe states in north-eastern Nigeria, just as his administration enters its final period in office. However, there is considerable scepticism about an announcement that could allow fragile northern states to tap into additional federal funding, writes Adaora Elemide in Abuja.

The question of how and whether financial institutions should support major energy projects that have fossil fuel components is prompting regulators and insurers to weigh up potential new rules, including re-examining the definition of terms like “ESG” (environmental, social and governance). 

Glencore received the ‘highest ever fines and costs ordered in a British corporate criminal conviction’, the UK’s Serious Fraud Office said after a London court found the resources giant guilty of graft – in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria – and of ‘failures to prevent bribery’ in Equatorial Guinea and South Sudan in 2011-14. Chastened once more after its practises were reported in eye-watering legal detail, Glencore has embarked on “an extensive programme of corporate reform”.

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.

The new Revolution for Prosperity (RFP)-led government has a tough agenda of reforms to enact if it is to turn around Lesotho’s fortunes.  Prime Minister Sam Matekane’s administration has ambitions to make Lesotho self-sufficient in energy, by increasing generation capacity to an extent that the landlocked kingdom could become an electricity (as well as a water) exporter.