Egypt tilts to vertical integration in solar

October 05, 2025

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Egypt is welcoming a new Chinese investor in its solar manufacturing sector, which has already attracted multiple Asian firms. Chinese glassmaker CSG Holding has approved a $247 million investment to build a photovoltaic glass factory in the country. This brings Egypt closer to being the first African country to establish a vertically integrated solar industry.

  • Egypt last month unveiled a roadmap to localise 28 strategic sectors, including solar panels, wind turbines, battery storage and electric vehicles, to meet local demand and reduce reliance on imports.

  • The country has announced solar manufacturing projects exceeding 10 GW, the largest on the continent.

  • Our take: Egypt’s progress reflects the global shift to regionalised supply chains… Read more (2 min)

Senegal's power utility Senelec has issued a $215 million bond backed by future customer bills, the first securitisation by an African public utility. Half of the amount will finance green projects, with the rest supporting sustainability targets. At an interest rate of 8%, it appears to facilitate access to more favourable financing than traditional lending.

  • Securitisation bonds enable companies to unlock capital from illiquid assets. Senelec can fund long-term goals without traditional government or development bank backing.

  • African securitisation deals are on the rise. Sun King, an off-grid solar firm, set the precedent in July with a $156 million securitisation in local currency.

  • Our take: Securitisation can accelerate the continent's infrastructure and climate agendas.… Read more (2 min)

When Ethiopia set ambitious energy goals, projects boomed but many were limited local capacity. Gaps in technical skills and business models slowed progress. Seeing this challenge, Filagot Tesfaye founded ON Energy Consult & Trading. In an interview with Renewables Rising, she shares her many learnings and future goals.

  • “Graduates know the theory but struggle with practical applications. Understanding the entire ecosystem, including which financial institutions can support them, is critical,” says Ms Filagot. 

  • She is not only managing director at ON Energy Consult but also a champion of women's empowerment.

  • Read the full conversation here… Read more (2 min)

Panellists assemble at the ASCENT Week 2025 in Lusaka, Zambia

Events

🗓️ Be at the Solar Africa Tanzania 2025 event (Oct 8)

🗓️ Register for the Nigeria Mining Week 2025 forum (Oct 13)

🗓️ Participate in the first-ever African Energy Efficiency Conference (Dec 10)

Jobs 

👩🏻‍💻 Apply for SunCulture’s People Operations Manager role (Kenya)

👷🏽‍♂️ Join CrossBoundary’s team as a Procurement Officer (South Africa)

👷🏼‍♀️ Become Sun King’s Associate Manager, Corporate Finance (Nigeria)

Various 

⚡ Nigeria secures a 100 MW floating solar project deal

🔌 Zimbabwe pursues private capital to modernise its energy grid

☀️ Red Rocket inks deal with trader for 300 MW solar power in South Africa

🟢 Ghana rolls out 10 solar boreholes for irrigation with the Feed Ghana initiative

Seen on LinkedIn 

Gavin Mooney, General Manager at Kaluza, says, “The very industries producing the minerals for solar, wind, and batteries are also decarbonising their own operations — closing the loop and accelerating the transition.”