Floating solar makes waves in African energy investments

August 25, 2025

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Floating solar photovoltaic (FPV) projects are rarely mentioned when it comes to renewables projects in Africa. But this month marked a shift, with two FPV projects securing funding. Afreximbank provided $4.4 million for feasibility studies for the 1 GW project in Zimbabwe, and Qair secured $5.7 million to develop a 5.8 MW floating solar project in Seychelles.

  • Pioneering projects in Ghana and South Africa have demonstrated the technological synergy with existing hydropower infrastructure. Although these completed projects were small, they’ll be followed by utility-scale developments.

  • When integrated effectively, hydropower and floating solar can power the next generation of pumped hydropower storage plants. This would ensure smooth electricity generation, even during periods of severe drought.

  • Our take: African countries could double their current installed solar capacity by harnessing just 1% of their floating solar potential… Read more (2 min)

Nigeria’s grid infrastructure is set for a major upgrade after securing $238 million in funding from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The investment will focus on strengthening the transmission network, which has been a bottleneck in the country’s power sector and a key cause of frequent outages and unreliable power supply.

  • Experts estimate that Nigeria will need at least $1.5 billion annually over the next decade to modernise its outdated grid infrastructure. The government is also moving fast with policy changes to encourage private sector participation.

  • A major challenge remains the low electricity bill collection rate, severely limiting the national utility’s revenue generation. To address this, plans are underway to install meters for the 7 million customers who are still unmetered.

  • Our take: The coming decades will see a more interconnected power market, and African countries should build their systems with that in mind… Read more (2 min)

In July and August, at least 6,400 MW of renewable energy capacity and 1,230 MWh of battery storage were added through new completed projects, according to the Renewables Rising projects database. These two months accounted for the highest share so far, about 40% of all completed projects since we began collecting data at the start of the year.

  • The two months saw at least 2.3 GW of new projects in pre-construction and 1 GW under construction. The sector’s attractiveness is driving many projects to secure funding and advance to construction.

  • Energy storage projects totalled roughly 3,755 MWh, with almost half of this capacity coming from Egypt, where a 300 MWh plant was completed in a record two months.

  • Our take: Ultimately, solar will be the backbone of renewables in Africa.… Read more (2 min)

South Africa-based Mulilo Energy hosts youth at the recent Prieska & De Aar Career Exhibitions in South Africa

 

Events

🗓️ Participate in the Ignite Young Minds with Energy 4 Me event (Sep 6)

🗓️ Sign up for a webinar on solar for C&I installations & large PV plants (Sep 18)

🗓️ Take part in  a forum on batteries and metals in global energy (Sep 29)

Jobs

👨🏿‍💼 Join KEREA as a Technical Officer- PUE (Kenya)

👨‍💼 Become Engie’s Country Director (Mozambique)

👷🏻‍♀️ Apply to Scatec’s Environmental & Social Advisor role (South Africa)

Various 

💸 Benin receives $48 million investment for solar power project

💡 Eskom achieves 100-day streak without loadshedding

💰 Kenya lands $169 million Samurai Loan from Japan for energy sector growth

Seen on LinkedIn 

Jacopo Licheri, Business Development Manager at Studio Santi, says, “Infrastructure investors are increasingly exploring renewable energy opportunities in geopolitically challenging regions where energy demand is acute but traditional financing models may fall short.”