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COP29 will build on the COP28 agreement by advancing initiatives and priorities that accelerate the development of renewable energy potential and remove barriers to its expansion. (Image source: IRENA)

Energy

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has released a new report assessing the feasibility of achieving the COP28 target of tripling renewables by 2030

In pursuit of meeting the collective goal of the Paris Agreement to keep global warming well below 2°C global leaders set a target of tripling renewables by 2030 at Cop28 in UAE. Nearly one year on from the conference, IRENA has assessed the progress made, stating that, despite an unprecedented acceleration in renewable energy deployment in 2023, the world will likely fall short of the target.

These findings were published in its newly released ‘Delivering on the UAE Consensus: tracking progress toward tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030’. Produced in partnership with COP28, Cop29, COP30 host Brazil and the Global Renewables Alliance today at Pre-COP, it provides accurate inputs to future COP decisions including COP29 in Baku.

The findings demonstrate that current national plans and targets are set to deliver only half of the required growth in renewable power by 2030. According to the organisation, annual investment in renewable capacity would have to triple, from a record high of US$570bn in 2023 to US$1.5 trillion every year between 2024 and 2030.

Global shortfalls

To meet the global goals, installed renewable capacity would have to grow from 3.9TW today to 11.2TW by 2030, requiring an additional 7.3 TW in less than six years. Yet, current national plans are projected to leave a global collective gap of 3.8TW by 2030, falling short of the goal by 34%. In addition, the annual energy intensity improvement rate must increase from 2% in 2022 to 4% on a yearly base up to 2030.

According to IRENA, these shortfalls highlight the inadequacy of existing policies and plans to limit global temperature rise to 1.5°C, underscoring the need for urgent policy interventions and massive investment. The third round of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement in 2025 must close the gap towards 2030.

“Today, we’re raising the alarm,” Francesco La Camera, IRENA’s director-general. “As the custodian for tracking progress of the UAE Consensus energy goals, we must flag significant gaps. The COP28 goals of tripling renewables and doubling energy efficiency are key enablers for our global efforts to keep 1.5°C within reach but we risk missing them. The next NDCs must mark a turning point and bring the world back on track.”

The progress report concludes that to deliver the UAE Consensus goals on the ground, significant advances will be required across the key enablers of the energy transition, namely: infrastructure and system operation, policy and regulation, supply chains, skills and capacities, finance, and international collaboration.

Emerging and developing economies continue to face financing gaps that undermine access to capital-intensive energy transition technologies. Renewable power investments in Africa declined by 47% between 2022 and 2023. Sub-Saharan Africa received 40 times less than the world average per capita transition-related investment.

14Trees 3D printing technology has been building affordable and low-carbon housing and schools in Africa. (Image source: BII)

Construction

Innovative startups 14Trees and Paebbl are set to receive investment from Holcim and Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund

14Trees, which was established as a joint venture between Holcim and BII to accelerate the provision of sustainable construction solutions in Africa, will receive funding by Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund as well as a follow-on investment by Holcim. With the company carving a name for itself by pioneering the delivery of the first 3D-printed house in Africa, the world’s first 3D-printed schools, and one of the largest 3D-printed neighbourhoods across the globe, the injection of capital will be used to accelerate its construction of large-scale buildings, including low-carbon data centres.

“We are excited to count Amazon and Holcim as investors in 14 Trees, to take our successful 3D-printed technology from homes and schools to data centers, to deliver low-carbon and high-performance buildings,” remarked Francois Perrot, managing director, 14Trees.

Carbon dioxide concrete storage

Paebbl converts CO2 into a future-proof industrial raw material that turns the built environment into a permanent carbon store. The investment into the company, meanwhile, is part of a broader investment round to scale its advanced mineralisation technology which is designed to permanently store CO2 in concrete as a carbon sink.

Marta Sjögren, co-founder and co-CEO, Paebbl, surmised, “We are thrilled to welcome first movers in their respective fields, Amazon and Holcim, as first commercial partners to bring our vision to market. This funding round enables us to take even bolder steps in our mission to make the built environment a cornerstone of the decarbonised economy.”

Nollaig Forrest, chief sustainability officer, Holcim, added, “By investing with Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund into 14Trees and Paebbl, we can scale up these pioneering technologies to push the boundaries of sustainable building, from 3D printing to making concrete a carbon sink.”

Machinery Exchange will now supply Rokbak trucks to customers in Zimbabwe. (Image source: Rokbak)

Mining

Rokbak, a manufacturer of off-highway haulers for the mining, quarrying and construction sectors and member of the Volvo Group, has appointed Machinery Exchange as its new dealer in Zimbabwe

A subsidiary of Industrial Exchange Group (IEG) network of companies, Machinery Exchange has been appointed by Rokbak to provide full sales and service support for its trucks in the country from its headquarters in Harare and further branches in Bulawayo and Hwange. According to Rokbak, ongoing growth in the country’s infrastructure and mining sectors means that interest is already high and the company expects the newly-available RA30 and RA40 trucks to prove popular there.

"The partnership with Rokbak will help us meet the growing demands of our customers in the mining and construction industry, and further solidify our position as a leading earthmoving equipment supplier in the region," remarked Irene Khumalo, IEG head of marketing and PR.

Zimbabwe’s ripe market

"Mining and infrastructure are the backbone of Zimbabwe," explained Chetan Samji, IEG commercial manager. "The country’s industries are growing domestically and we’re also seeing increased investment from overseas, especially from economic superpowers such as China and India. It means we see positive opportunities for Rokbak trucks in the near term."

As part of the partnership with Rokbak, Machinery Exchange will provide comprehensive aftersales support, ensuring that customers receive the best possible service and maintenance. This support will be vital in maintaining the high performance and longevity of Rokbak haulers in Zimbabwe's demanding operational environments.

"We’ve been keen to develop our presence in Zimbabwe and foster relationships with customers through an established dealer," commented Paul Culliford, Rokbak regional sales manager EMEA. "Partnering with Machinery Exchange makes perfect sense. It’s a company that shares our commitment to quality and customer satisfaction, and benefits from the support of IEG's extensive expertise and service network."

The expansion of operations to Zimbabwe closely follows Rokbak bolsering its presence in Wet Africa through a partnership with Heavy Machinery Dealership. Click here for more information. 

The project is part of the Nigeria-Cameroon Multinational Highway and Transport Facilitation Programme. (Image source: ECOWAS)

Logistics

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) in collaboration with the African Development Bank, have sought to transform the border crossing at Ekok/Mufum between Cameroon and Nigeria

A modern joint border post has which was introduced in November 2022 has now been fully completed with an arsenal of modern upgrades to raise efficiency. The list of improvements now installed include a cargo scanner, baggage & walkthrough metal detectors, and weighbridge.

The security scanner will assist border officials – who have all now received training on the use of the equipment – by allowing them to more efficiently examine and screen cargos along the corridor. This will help to reduce the process time and enhance the security of all goods. Similarly, the weighbridge helps customs to check the gross weight of trucks and detect excessive loading of trucks. It is hoped that this will reduce road decoration, thereby saving future investment.

Recently, ECOWAS officially commenced the construction of a bridge over the Cavally River, helping to connect Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia. Click here to discover more.

The transaction marks a significant milestone as the first investment under the Africa Resilience Investment Accelerator. (Image source: BII)

Finance

British International Investment, a development finance institution and impact investor, has sought to boost private sector growth in high-impact sectors through the launch of a US$25mn risk sharing facility with Ecobank Sierra Leone

Currently, SMEs provide employment for about 70% of Sierra Leone’s population. Despite representing a crucial component of the country’s economy, BII has noted that these businesses still struggle to gain access to capital due to a number of factors such as limited availability of suitable financial products, high collateral requirements, high interest rates and the prevalence of short-term loans.

The risk sharing facility, which includes a comprehensive technical assistance programme, will therefore support Ecobank to increase lending to ambitious businesses in a frontier market where economic growth is hampered by lack of capital and investment.

“The signing of this agreement with Ecobank Sierra Leone underscores BII’s pioneering role to lead investments in countries that are often overlooked by investors,” remarked Samir Abhyankar, MD and head of financial services, BII. “The facility will be a game-changer for Sierra Leone, providing much-needed capital for ambitious local businesses to accelerate their growth, spur job creation and deepen impact. It’s an example of BII innovating and working with partners to help address pressing challenges where it matters the most.”

Growing Sierra Leone business

Building on US$50mn trade finance facility between the two entities in 2021 (which helped the bank to deepen its reach across Africa), the new facility will support local currency lending. According to BII, it will demonstrate its ability to act as the first mover in frontier markets and drive impact through risk navigation strategies.

Sebastian Ashong-Katai, managing director, Ecobank Sierra Leone, remarked, “We are delighted to have secured the support of British International Investment in boosting Ecobank’s vital lending capacity for Sierra Leone businesses who are the engine room for our country’s growth, economic development and employment. This further strengthens our intent to be the bank of choice for Sierra Leone’s businesses and leverages our delivery of world-class products, services, solutions, borderless digital pan-African platform and business skills training which are designed to support them in further growing their businesses.”

The investment will help Ecobank Sierra Leone to grow its loan book by increasing credit limits and extend lending tenors to up to five years. This is expected to boost business growth, create more jobs and increase private sector contribution to Sierra Leone’s economy.

Circulor’s traceability platform and Rockwell’s existing automation systems provide actionable insights that can reduce costs, improve efficiency, and create a competitive advantage in the evolving sustainability landscape. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Manufacturing

Circulor, a leading supply chain traceability solution provider, has agreed to collaborate with Rockwell Automation, a company dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, in order to help customers trace the origin of raw materials from source to final product

Circulor’s platform empowers customers to not only adhere to increasingly strict regulatory standards, but also achieve their sustainability goals by providing a holistic view of the materials journey. As per the new partnership, Rockwell will offer advanced traceability solutions to enable manufacturers to meet emerging regulatory requirements while verifying the source materials, demonstrating digital chain-of-custody and tracking emissions.

Rockwell plans to deploy this solution globally across auto, tyre, battery, metals, mining, and cement industries through Kalypso, a Rockwell Automation business. Kalypso will work closely with customers to assess their unique needs, provide consulting services and support the rollout of this innovative solution across their supply chain.

Manufacturing traceability

Douglas Johnson-Poensgen, chief executive officer of Circulor, remarked, “In an increasingly competitive and complex market where being sustainable and responsible is a strategic imperative, the combination of Rockwell’s state-of-the-art manufacturing expertise and Circulor’s leading traceability and digital product passports provide organisations with the answer to gaining a competitive advantage.”

“Our focus on sustainability aligns with our customers’ strategic objectives,” added James Glasson, vice president of global industry for auto, tire, and advanced mobility at Rockwell Automation. “This collaboration with Circulor allows us to offer a comprehensive traceability solution that not only addresses growing global regulations but also provides unprecedented visibility into supply chain carbon footprints.”

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