The Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB) has closed a US$4.2mn deal with Sunspot Energy Kenya Limited, a solar home system provider operating as Spark Possibilities

Mozambique’s Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy (MIREME) has invited developers to submit request for qualification (RFQ) documents for the planned 1,500MW Mphanda Nkuwa Hydropower Project

MIREME is being represented by Gabinete de Implentacao do Projecto Hirdoelectrico de Mphanda Nkuwa (GMNK) for the hydropower scheme. The government entities are conducting a competitive tendering process to select a strategic partner to develop the project, which will be located on the Zambezi river, 60km from the Cahora Bassa Dam.

Interested parties can obtain more information and collect the RFQ by contacting GMNK from 14 December. The deadline for submitting RFW is 28 February 2022.

Synergy Consulting is the transaction advisor (TA), with Worley and Baker Mckenzie providing technical and legal advisory services respectively. HRA Advogados is acting as the local legal adviser.

Under the proposed structure, the strategic partner is expected to be the majority shareholder developing the project, with government entities Electricidade de Mozambique (EDM) and Hidoelectrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB) owning the remaining stakes.

The project company will sign an offtake agreement under a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with EDM, along with direct and indirect offtake agreements with other potential offtakers in the region.

DNV’s Ocean’s Future to 2050 report has stated that the rapid growth of offshore wind will trigger an unprecedented race for ocean space

The exponential growth of offshore wind power will be the main driver of a nine-fold increase in demand for ocean space by the middle of the century, according to DNV’s Ocean’s Future to 2050 report. The report forecasts that by midcentury, offshore wind will require ocean space which is the equivalent to the landmass of Italy. The growth will be particularly pronounced in regions with long coastlines and presently have low penetration of offshore wind. Demand for ocean space is set to grow 50-fold in the Indian Subcontinent and 30-fold in North America.

The rise of wind will be pivotal to the transformation of the Blue Economy. Currently, 80% of capital expenditure (capex) in the Blue Economy is invested in the offshore oil and gas sector, but by 2050 that number will have dropped to 25%. By then, offshore wind will receive the largest investments, accounting for half of all capital expenditure (capex).  The decreasing prominence of oil and gas will be largely responsible for capex inflows into the Blue Economy being less in 2050 than today, whilst operating expenditure will increase below GDP growth.  The Blue Economy will be more focused on Asia with Greater China set to account for more than a quarter of capex by 2050 as it builds out its offshore wind capacity and marine aquaculture.

“The Blue Economy is entering a period of sectoral and geographic diversification,” said Remi Eriksen, group president and CEO of DNV. “Currently, the regions which benefit most from the ocean in economic terms are those with access to oil and gas fields off their coastlines. But as the world decarbonises and the need for renewable energy grows, countries not able to be part of the age of fossil fuel can be part of the age of wind”

The growing economic strength of Asia and the energy transition will also impact the maritime sector.  After years of faster-than-GDP growth, seaborne trade will only grow 35% to 2050, while global GDP almost doubles.  Bulk will remain the largest segment in the merchant fleet, despite reduced demand for coal transportation.  Tankers will be overtaken by container vessels as the second largest segment, even if demand for gas tankers remains robust.  COVID 19 will have no long-term impact on cruise industry and berth capacity will triple by 2050.

Aquaculture production will more than double by the middle of the century, approaching the level of wild catch.  But seafood (inland and marine) will account for only 9% of global protein demand in 2050. Total asustainable nnual catch is forecast to be 95 million metric tonnes by mid-century, exceeding the maximum yield of marine capture fisheries and stressing the need for optimal fisheries management.

Ocean’s Future to 2050 is a holistic forecast of the Blue Economy and covers areas as diverse as food, energy, shipping, tourism, desalination, ocean health and spatial planning.

In line with its strategy to address the gap in Africa’s renewable energy sector, the African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI) has supported the financing of the Golomoti solar PV, a 20MW solar power plant in Malawi

Ville Rimali, director of growth and development for Africa and Europe, Wärtsilä Energy Business, has explored why flexibility is essential to the energy revolution in Africa