Private sector commits billions to clean energy

November 26, 2025

Dear subscriber,

Africa’s journey towards universal electrification is gaining momentum. This progress is driven not only by new energy projects but also by companies moving to build local renewables manufacturing capacity.

– Sammy Jamar, Editor

Africa’s clean energy transition gained strong momentum this week at Global Citizen’s Scaling Up Renewables in Africa forum in South Africa, where five private firms pledged at least $13 billion for new clean energy investments. The commitments are expected to support a pipeline of 16.2 GW of new renewable energy capacity across the continent.

  • Enertrag, Octopus Energy, Genesis Energy Group, CrossBoundary Energy and Harith General Partners made the commitments, setting the stage for the next wave of energy investment across Africa.

  • The renewables market has long been driven mainly by governments and climate advocates concerned about the impacts of fossil fuels. Today, companies are taking the lead, with economics becoming the main force behind the shift.

  • Our take: Governments must open the entire power supply chain to investors and help de-risk unattractive areas.… Read more (2 min)

Transnet bags $753m for renewables & infra

South Africa’s state-owned freight and logistics company Transnet has secured $753 million in loan funding for its renewable energy transition and critical infrastructure upgrades. The European Investment Bank provided a $405 million loan supported by a $21 million EU grant, while France’s development agency contributed a further $348 million.

  • South Africa’s ports and freight system have suffered years of underinvestment, with inefficiencies costing the economy an estimated $20 billion in lost export revenue since 2022. 

  • The new green-aligned investments are intended to stabilise the system, reduce diesel use and help Transnet meet increasing pressure from exporters for more reliable services.

  • Our take: Digitalisation will guide port decarbonisation through real-time tracking… Read more (2 min)

Morocco has signed an $861 million agreement with solar energy company GPM Holding SA to establish its first polysilicon plant, a material used in the solar industry for making photovoltaic cells. This comes as Africa moves to localise production of renewable energy technologies. Around 85% of the plant’s output will be for exports.

  • More African countries are increasingly investing in local production industries for renewable energy to safeguard energy supply, reduce reliance on volatile global markets, and maintain reliable power access.

  • Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa are among the countries with notable progress in localising renewable energy production beyond basic assembly.

  • Our take: A slowdown in China’s solar expansion has opened a strategic window for Africa… Read more (2 min)

The TDB Group and World Bank approve five ASCENT grants to boost energy access in Africa (Source: TBD Group)

Events

🗓️ Take part in the Renewable Energy Forum Africa (REFA) 2025 (Dec 3)

🗓️ Sign up for the Women in Renewable Energy Conference (Dec 9)

🗓️ Attend a session exploring blended finance for green projects (Dec 10)

Jobs

💼 Join Sun King as an Associate Product Manager (Togo)

👨🏻‍💻 Lead debt recovery operations at SunCulture (Kenya)

👩🏻‍💼 Become CrossBoundary’s Business Development Analyst (South Africa)

Various

🔌 Orange Morocco opens a new 1.5 MW data centre in Morocco

💡 Husk debuts an AI-based distributed energy platform for the Global South

🌊 Ivanhoe Mines announces full commissioning of Inga II’s 178 MW Turbine 5 

⚡ Ignite Energy Access Nigeria equips 34 rural schools with solar power systems

Seen on LinkedIn 

Prince Naley Alobari, Strategic Business Analyst at National Electricity Systems Operators, says, “Africa has 54 countries, but zero fully integrated energy markets. Every nation builds and manages power as if it exists alone. But the future of energy is regional, not national.”