AfDB annual meetings yield US$1,5bn green energy deals
THE Africa Investment Forum presented four renewable energy and sustainability projects worth nearly US$1,5 billion to investors on the sidelines of the African Development Bank Group’s 2023 Annual Meetings in Egypt.
The curated projects, which are drawn from all of Africa’s regions, are sourced from the Africa Investment Forum’s pipeline, which comprises 90 deals valued at US$62,9 billion.
These reflect gathering urgency in Africa, the world’s most vulnerable region to climate change, to accelerate climate action, including closing financing gaps by securing an ever-increasing share of global capital for the continent.
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The African Development Bank (AfDB)’s 2023 Annual Meetings are being held under the theme: “Mobilising Private Sector Financing for Climate and Green Growth in Africa”.
In a media update, the regional financier said the investment roundtable, held in Sharm El Sheikh, attracted a range of private investors, including venture capital and private equity firms.
From hydropower to plastic recycling green projects, the AfDB says Africa has ample opportunities on the renewable energy front that need to be unlocked.
Among the major high-impact transactions it noted the opportunity to invest in a US$440 million Southern Africa hydropower independent power producer that will generate 544,000MWh/year of energy.
This will also include water distribution and flood prevention elements. Other benefits include 3 000 construction jobs through project completion. The transaction sponsors are seeking US$12,5 million to finalise the project’s development phase, said the AfDB.
There is also a hybrid hydrogen feedstock/ammonia project in North Africa that will source about 400MW of renewable energy to produce, without Co2 emissions, 183 tons of hydrogen feedstock daily to generate 1 000 tons a day of green ammonia via electrolysis.
An additional investment of US$27 million is needed to move the project towards bankability, said AfDB.
The third transaction, in West Africa, is a 27MW hydropower project that has successfully undergone feasibility assessments and has attracted funding support from a number of international entities and multilateral development agencies.
Among projected benefits, the deal will service 700 000 households, generate 600 direct and indirect jobs over the life of the project, and reduce Co2 emissions by 81,000 tons each year.
The project represents an increase of 10 percent in the country’s total electricity generation capacity.
The investment roundtable also featured an opportunity to invest in a US$73 million plastic recycling and sustainability company’s expansion drive into seven African countries across West, Central, and Southern Africa.
The project has attracted the interest of several funders on project preparation and technical assistance to conduct feasibility studies in the target countries.
It promises important benefits such as creation of 16 000 jobs as well as opportunities for 20 000 waste pickers in targeted countries.
It will also divert 214000 metric tons of plastic waste (PET,PP,PE) from landfill dumps and reduce carbon emissions by 149,000 metric tons.
At the moment, only 10 percent of Africa’s plastics are recycled, said the bank, and the project resonates positively with growth capital investors that attended the roundtable.
Africa Investment Forum senior director, Chinelo Anohu, hosted the event and lauded the platform while noting that the transactions showcased represented only a small part of the platform portfolio.
In addition to the AfDB representatives of the Africa Investment Forum founding partners Africa Finance Corporation, Africa50, Islamic Development Bank, Development Bank of Southern Africa,
Trade and Development Bank and Afreximbank attended.
Investors present asked follow-up questions to learn more about the projects presented.
The Africa Investment Forum is Africa’s investment marketplace to accelerate transactions to close Africa’s investment gaps.-chronicles
