Kenya lights rural areas with $150m World Bank funding

• Africa's rural areas represent a vast, untapped renewable energy market. Despite Kenya's progress (75% rural electrification), 600 million Africans still lack power with most residing in remote terrains.

• Historically, grid extension to remote areas has been too costly. Kenya's shift to renewable mini-grids and stand-alone systems tackles this problem head-on, opening up power to previously unreachable communities.

• Our take: Addressing infrastructural challenges that make grid extension in rural areas unviable should probably be the first step... Read more (2 min)

Africa’s electricity demand to grow by 5% in 2025

• This week, both Kenya and Nigeria announced new peak electricity demand records, signalling anticipated growth.

• Africa's major economies, including South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, and Nigeria, have opened their electricity markets, attracting billions of dollars in renewable energy projects. Yesterday, Egypt announced plans to build a 2 GW wind farm–the largest in Africa.

• Our take: African countries' low electrification rate is an opportunity to ensure new connections are renewable based… Read more (2 min)

Ethiopia moves to de-risk private power investments

• Last week, Ethiopia issued an advertisement inviting bids for the construction of two utility-scale solar PV projects, totalling 225 MW, under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) framework.

• Investing in Africa is often perceived by investors as risky, primarily due to political risks. This perception has scared many potential investors. However, Africa offers numerous opportunities. ATIDI was established as an insurance vehicle to mitigate these risks.

• Our take: Private sector players are ready to invest in the African energy space. What's needed is protection to guarantee payments… Read more (2 min)

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