University of Cape Town (UCT)

A 1MW solar mini-grid with 2.4MWh of battery storage now serves 6,028 connections in Tallasse, Gombe State, ending what the Ministry of Power describes as a 17-year blackout. The REA has also started building a 16MW network of four interconnected mini-grids across the state.

Health facilities in three provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo with power sufficient to run everything they needed, available for at least 22 hours a day, had inpatient mortality about 41% lower than those without, according to a study of 303 facilities in PNAS. Its authors want reliability targets tied to patient outcomes.

Tunisia’s 2027 Finance Bill sets out 1,600MW of new solar, wind, and storage capacity to raise renewable electricity generation from 12% to 16%. International investors will bid for 1,100MW under concession and licensing rounds, anchored by a 300MW solar and battery plant in Kebili, alongside 500MW of self-generation.

The EBRD has arranged a syndicated loan of up to $265m for Nefer Menya, the 1.2GW solar plant with 600MWh of battery storage that Infinity Power and HAU Energy are developing in Minya. It forms part of a debt package of up to $566m, with the power sold under a 25-year PPA.

IFC Nigeria infrastructure priorities from Marieme Travaly, from DARES and power distribution to local-currency finance through InfraCredit, and what makes gas bankable.

Mozambique’s state oil company ENH is courting South African investment for a $250m project to bring regasified gas into the ROMPCO pipeline through floating units at Inhassoro and Beira. Chief executive Rudencio Morais told Reuters he wants the infrastructure ready by 2030 or 2031.

Three alumina refineries are under construction in Guinea and the government wants five by 2030, Daouda Diakite told African Mining Week in Cape Town. The country generates about 1,000MW, mostly from hydro, and says industrialisation will need 5,000MW to 10,000MW. Investors and governments across the continent are now weighing that gap.

Vincenzia Leitich, Executive Vice President for Power and Renewables Client Coverage at Standard Bank Corporate and Investment Banking, tells ENN what a lender needs before a mine can anchor a power project in Zambia or Zimbabwe, and what would make a cross-border power purchase agreement bankable today.