Power Africa Briefs

RIC Energy starts 23-MWp solar project in Uganda

Spanish solar PV developer RIC Energy has launched the construction of a 23-MWp photovoltaic (PV) farm in Uganda. RIC Energy is building the project, named Nkonge, for The Xsabo Group, a Kampala-based German-Ugandan diversified consultancy.

Works will also include the construction of a 132-kV/33-kV step-up substation and a 4.5-kilometre 132-kV overhead line, RIC Energy said. The contract will conclude by the first half of 2023. A statement said once the Nkonge solar farm goes online, the Xsabo Group will sell its output to Uganda Electricity Transmission Co Ltd, while RIC Energy stays on the ground to provide operations and maintenance services.

IC Energy touts Nkonge as the largest privately funded solar project in Uganda, and one of the largest in East and Central Africa.

NTPC Inks MOU with Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy for Cooperation in RE Sector

NTPC and Masen (Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy) signed an MOU for cooperation in the renewable energy sector during the 17th CII EXIM conclave on India-Africa growth partnership held in New Delhi from 19th- 20th July 2022.

The conclave witnessed huge participation from several African countries and deliberations were held to promote investment and collaboration between Indian and African companies in various sectors in Africa.

The MOU between NTPC Ltd. and Masen which are pioneers in the field of renewable energy generation promises to usher in the joint development of utility-scale projects based on renewable energy in Africa.

The cooperation may witness NTPC and Masen exploring common development opportunities for renewable energy power projects in other African Countries.

African Energy Chamber congratulates Nigeria over new NNPC

The African Energy Chamber (AEC) has congratulated Nigeria on the conversion of erstwhile Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to a limited liability commercial entity.

The Chamber said the move initiates a “monumental shift in active engagement, accountability and value that is expected to reshape Nigeria’s petroleum industry, while simultaneously acting as a model for other national oil companies on the continent.”

Rather than rushing into the elimination of oil and gas, NNPC and Nigeria will now be able to more nimbly, transparently, and efficiently take advantage of its hydrocarbons and natural resources to bring more value and wealth to the country and its people, said NJ Ayuk, executive chairman of Africa Energy Chamber.

He noted that the new NNPC will now operate on the same operational level as other successful state-owned petroleum corporations, such as Brazil’s Petrobas and Saudi Arabia’s Aramco.

Ayuk expressed the hope that the innumerable opportunities coming with the new NNPC Ltd will be showcased at this year’s African Energy Week (AEW) 2022, which will take place on 18-21 October in Cape Town, South Africa.

Nigeria: Indigenous Energy Firms Urged to Take Over Assets of Divesting IOCs

Members of the Indigenous Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG) have been challenged to be ready to take over from where divesting international oil companies (IOCs) would stop when they divest finally.

As part of his remarks at the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) divestment workshop with the theme, ‘The Big Sale: Opportunities In The Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry From Asset Divestments’, in Lagos, minister of state petroleum Resources Chief Timipre Sylva said IPPG should see the divestments by IOC in oil and gas assets in Nigeria as an opportunity to step in to fill the gaps in the sector.

“The Indigenous Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG) and other potential investors, should therefore perceive the IOCs’ divestments in some of the upstream assets as opportunities, rather than a threat, to become more involved in the development of the Nigerian upstream petroleum sector,” the minister said.

He urged IPPG members to strive to move their present contribution “in production and reserves to at least 50%, from about 30% for crude oil and 20% for gas production, as well as 40% and 32% for oil and gas reserves, respectively.”