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Australia’s Intra Energy has signed an agreement to extend and amend its year-old memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tanzania Electric Supply Company (Tanesco) for the development of a coal-fired power station as a mine-mouth project at the Tancoal mining area in the Ngaka coalfields, in the Ruvuma region of south-west Tanzania.

Revised April 2013, this map provides an overview of Nigeria's power sector. Actual and planned generation and transmission projects are shown including renewables. Transmission lines range from 132kV to the planned 760kV supergrid. Detail also includes the location of 330kV and 132kV substations. Distribution zone boundaries are marked.

The governments of South Africa and Denmark on 4 March signed an agreement under which Denmark will provide financial support to South Africa for investment in wind power as well as technical support to help Eskom integrate renewable energy into the grid.

Democratic Republic of Congo’s hydrocarbons prospects are so attractive that a few companies remain apparently unconcerned about the lack of regulatory structure for the industry or bloody Mai Mai and other insurgencies that might upset their operations. Canada-based Alberta Oilsands and Pan African Oil in January signed a production-sharing agreement to explore Block 5 (Kalembie) and Block 6 (Fatuma) on Lake Tanganyika. Pan African chief executive Gary Wine told African Energy the companies were “basically in a memorandum of understanding stage at the moment”.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has named Transparency International vice chairman Akere Muna as sanctions commissioner. The job is a part-time position heading the new Sanctions Office, which is part of measures to strengthen the AfDB’s anti-corruption agenda and procurement procedures. The Sanctions Office will impose penalties where sanctionable practices have taken place in projects administered, financed or supported by the bank group.

Total has announced the final investment decision and contract awards for the Moho Nord development on the Moho-Bilondo licence. The $10bn development will target some 485m boe of new reserves, comprising additional reserves in the southern part of the licence with Moho Bilondo Phase 1 bis, and new reserves in the northern sector with Moho Nord. First oil is expected in 2015, with output reaching 140,000 boe/d in 2017.

Apache Khalda Corporation has given contracts to Foster Wheeler’s Global Engineering and Construction Group for technical consultancy services to oversee the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) phase of the Qasr Compression Project. The project will provide additional compression to existing facilities at the Qasr gas condensate field in the Western Desert so that production levels can be maintained.

The deadline by which preferred bidders from the second round of South Africa’s renewable energy independent power producers (REIPPP) programme must reach financial close has been extended from the end of March to 22-26 April. The delay has been caused by the Department of Energy needing approvals before it can sign agreements, the most important of which is the requirement that the budget for each round is formally approved by the Treasury under the Public Finance Management Act.

Investment bank Renaissance Capital is suing African Minerals in London’s Commercial Court for £25m of unpaid advisory fees relating to a fundraising in 2010. The dispute centres on a £170m cash injection by Chinese state-owned China Railway Materials Commercial Corporation to develop Sierra Leone’s Tonkolili iron ore mine, a deal for which Renaissance Capital claims it is owed substantial fees for facilitating.

Noble Energy spudded the I-7 exploration well on the Carla South exploration prospect in Block I in late March, using the Atwood Hunter semi-submersible drilling rig. Partner PA Resources said the Carla South prospect was on trend with the Carla North discovery recently appraised in Block O to the north of Block I. The target is Tertiary sandstones of similar age to those in Carla North, and the well is expected to take around 25 days to reach total depth, with plans for a subsequent sidetrack of similar duration.

Feasibility studies have been completed for the rehabilitation of the Bulawayo (90MW), Harare (100MW) and Munyati (90MW) coal-fired power plants. Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) managing director Noah Gwariro said India’s state-owned Wapcos had completed the studies and that ZPC would need to raise $300m to undertake the project to extend the life of the power plants by 30 years.

Australia’s Jacka Resources has signed a production-sharing agreement (PSA) for the onshore Ruhuhu Block. The PSA for the 10,343 km2 block has an initial exploration period of four years, with a work programme including the acquisition of airborne gravity and magnetic data, the acquisition of a minimum 400km of seismic and one exploration well. Jacka was set up by former Hardman Resources executives, led by chairman Scott Spencer.

Aggreko and APR Energy’s big new contracts in Mozambique and Libya show that business is booming for operators which can offer governments short-term solutions to uncertain power supply, writes Daniel Marks.
Faith in the future of the market in costly temporary power solutions has been tested as developing countries have expressed their intention to move away from over-reliance on rented ‘interim’ solutions that threatened the financial viability of several African utilities in the late 2000s. But for investors, temporary power solutions seem to be a gift that keeps on giving.

President Joyce Banda’s efforts to woo private investors and repair ties with neighbouring countries are revitalising Malawi’s power sector, with a new coal-fired plant on the cards and the revival of plans for an interconnection with Mozambique, writes Thalia Griffiths

Companies with uncommercial exploration commitments may be able to annul contracts without penalty following the second anniversary of the revolution. Companies which have yet to lift force majeure on their EPSA IV contracts may be able to take advantage of a clause stipulating automatic termination if force majeure is in place after two years. One Libya-based manager said: “Some companies have decided to stay with the force majeure notification and probably even terminate their contracts”.