Ghana’s oil revenues to reach $1 billion in 2022
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Ghana’s oil revenues to reach $1 billion in 2022

Ghana will gain revenues worth $1 billion next year from its nascent petroleum industry, authorities have projected. Out of the total, participating interest from crude oil will fetch the West African country $537.61 million, corporate income tax – $261.13 million, royalties from the sale of crude – $238.1 million, and surface rentals will be $0.9…

What is load shedding and why is it happening in South Africa?
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What is load shedding and why is it happening in South Africa?

Load shedding has become synonymous in the life of every South African. For 14 years, the country’s power utility – Eskom – has been implementing a complicated system of rolling blackouts on a rotating schedule. But how did Africa’s most developed country, the only nation in the continent to ever host arguably the largest tournament…

Is Africa ready for a Net Zero future?
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Is Africa ready for a Net Zero future?

The COP26 summit started with much fan fare and ended with developing countries being bashed for not making enough commitments to the global climate agenda. South Africa, the region’s most developed country, received the most heat, alongside Brazil, India and China, for pushing for the words “coal to be phased out” be changed to “phased…

Ghana eyes $1.7B loan to acquire oil and gas assets
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Ghana eyes $1.7B loan to acquire oil and gas assets

In May, Exxon Mobil pulled out of an offshore project in Ghana, hurting its nascent oil and gas sector. The move was part of a wider push to reduce carbon emissions by the American multinational, but it subsequently forced the government to draft a new investment plan that will accelerate oil and gas exploration by…

Half of Africa’s population lack access to electricity, UN study reveals
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Half of Africa’s population lack access to electricity, UN study reveals

A new study commissioned by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) indicates that 600 million people in the continent lack access to electricity and 900 million have no access to clean cooking fuel. The study titled “Energy Prices in Africa: Transitioning Towards Clean Energy for Africa’s Industrialization” cites countries such as Liberia, Malawi,…

Eastern Africa’s geothermal sector to receive $95 million investment
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Eastern Africa’s geothermal sector to receive $95 million investment

As part of its commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Eastern Africa, the European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to invest $95 million in geothermal power projects across the region. The bank also plans to increase sustainable and reliable energy supply and boost energy efficiency in businesses, health centers and educational facilities. The investment…

Why Zimbabwe will suffer lengthy power outages
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Why Zimbabwe will suffer lengthy power outages

A looming power crisis is about to hit Zimbabwe after a surge in electricity imports from neighboring South Africa overloaded its network and caused generating plants to fail. According to Energy Minister Soda Zhemu, the surge caused a nationwide blackout in the wee hours of Monday morning, as it affected output at the country’s main…

World Bank allocates $200 million to Benin for electricity projects
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World Bank allocates $200 million to Benin for electricity projects

Benin will receive a $200 million allocation from the World Bank to boost its efforts to improve access to electricity in the country. The money will be disbursed via the International Development Association (IDA). The electrification project will consist the construction of 2,000 kilometers of medium voltage lines and 4,000 kilometers of low voltage lies….

South Sudan targets increased oil production to boost economy

South Sudan targets increased oil production to boost economy

South Sudan is looking to boost oil production and build local refineries as part of a sweeping government effort to revive an economy battered by years of war and a global pandemic. Oil production, which accounts for nearly all of government revenues, has plummeted and according to Bol Ring Mourwel, managing director of state-owned Nile…

Nigeria’s plan to rebuild oil refineries ignores one key detail – oil is no longer valuable
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Nigeria’s plan to rebuild oil refineries ignores one key detail – oil is no longer valuable

(This is a transcript of the podcast posted on Monday, June 7th 2021. You can listen to the podcast by clicking on this link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0Vw5MYhMNXmYwMsM5O6FLh?si=V22y4gYeSnmURwk24gNRPA&nd=1) Welcome to The Weekly Beat by Mansa with your hosts, Arnold Segawa, Maggie Mutesi, and Dumi Jere. Giving you all the info on Africa’s big finance and economic stories, The…

Tanzania to begin construction of $30 billion natural gas project in 2023
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Tanzania to begin construction of $30 billion natural gas project in 2023

Tanzania’s government has laid out plans to kick start the construction of a delayed $30 billion liquefied natural gas project in 2023 as talks with interested companies resume. In an address to lawmakers, Minister of Energy Medard Kalemani said construction is expected to take about five years. Plans for an LNG plant on Tanzania’s southern…

Without government intervention, Ghana’s energy debt will hit $12.5 billion by 2023
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Without government intervention, Ghana’s energy debt will hit $12.5 billion by 2023

Ghana is facing a potential economic crisis fueled by mounting energy sector debt that could rise by 400% to $12.5 billion by 2023 should the government not undertake concrete steps to rein it. Government nominee for Minister of Energy Matthew Opoku Prempeh while addressing lawmakers during a cabinet vetting session on February 12, attributed the…

Sorry environmentalists, Angola’s appetite for more oil is irresistible
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Sorry environmentalists, Angola’s appetite for more oil is irresistible

Africa’s second largest oil producer has a problem, and it’s one that is uncommon in a region beset with many challenges. Conflict, poverty, and recently the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic have straddled borders and impacted the lives of hundreds of millions of Africans. But in Angola another problem is as much troublesome — and…

Africa Finance Corporation targets combining renewable infrastructure projects to attract more funding
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Africa Finance Corporation targets combining renewable infrastructure projects to attract more funding

Lagos-based Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) will shift its energy portfolio towards greener projects to attract greater investment from institutional partners, its new chief investment officer Sameh Shenouda announced. Shenouda joined the pan-African infrastructure bank from Blackstone-owned energy group Zarou on Monday, and he said the AFC board had agreed to a plan to bundle new…

Sudan warns Ethiopia further filling of Nile dam threatens national security
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Sudan warns Ethiopia further filling of Nile dam threatens national security

Ongoing tensions over the Nile waters have heightened after Sudan’s Minister for Irrigation and Water Resources Yasser Abbas warned that any unilateral move by Ethiopia to fill its Grand Renaissance Dam (GERD) “would threaten Sudan’s national security.” His comments come at a time when both countries have accused each other’s security forces of attacking civilians…

Tullow Oil focuses on West Africa to generate $7bn over next decade
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Tullow Oil focuses on West Africa to generate $7bn over next decade

British oil giant Tullow Oil will focus on its core assets in West Africa as part of a plan to boost cash generation and generate $7 billion of operating cash flow over the next decade, the firm announced. Of this, $2.7 billion will be invested back into the company, predominantly on recovering as much as…

Sudan’s government cuts petrol and diesel prices
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Sudan’s government cuts petrol and diesel prices

Sudan’s acting energy and mining minister Khairy Abdel Rahman has announced a cut in pump prices for petrol and diesel for consumers. The transitional government, that came into power after the ouster of long time autocrat former President Omar Bashir in 2019, has been phasing out fuel subsidies to help reduce a gaping budget deficit…

Japan’s Marubeni Corp pulls out of South African coal power plant project
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Japan’s Marubeni Corp pulls out of South African coal power plant project

South Africa’s 630 megawatt (MW) Thabametsi coal-based power plant project in northern Limpopo province has hit a new setback after Japanese group Marubeni Corp announced its pullout. Marubeni’s decision was influenced by the withdrawal of some South African investors and South Korea’s state-run Korea Electric Power Corp (KEPCO) last month. “As per our policy that…

Nigeria strikes deal to sell Chad electricity
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Nigeria strikes deal to sell Chad electricity

Nigeria’s federal government has reached a deal with Chad to supply electricity to its north eastern neighbor, sources have confirmed. The agreement was finalized after a recent meeting between the Nigerian negotiating team composed of officials from the Transmission Company of Nigeria and Chad’s Minister of Energy Ramatou Houtouin. Despite being a major oil producer,…

South African Eskom cuts 2019/20 financial year net loss to $1.3 billion
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South African Eskom cuts 2019/20 financial year net loss to $1.3 billion

Eskom, South Africa’s major power utility, trimmed its net loss to $1.3 billion in the 2019/20 financial year, though it projects a larger loss in the next financial year owing to the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The firm’s debt grew to $29.8 billion – equivalent to 9% of South Africa’s gross domestic product…