Turns out the renewables drought is not so dry after all

May 18, 2025

The World Bank has approved a $350 million grant to support Malawi's Mpatamanga Hydropower Storage Project (MHSP). The project is estimated to cost $1.5 billion and will be done through a public-private partnership, representing the largest foreign direct investment in the country's history. Once completed, it will connect over a million households.

  • The project has attracted other funders, including the European Union, which committed in February to providing $519 million for the hydropower plant together the new Malawi-Mozambique Interconnector electricity projects. 

  • The Malawian government aims to connect 2.7 million people to increase its electrification rate from the current 12.5% to 70% by 2030. It is banking on hydropower generation, which offers reliable baseload electricity.

  • Our take: New funding is flowing to hydropower projects as investor confidence rebounds in the context of the energy transition… Read more (2 min)

Uganda's government should establish clear, consistent and supportive policies to boost renewable energy. Waibi Edson, a Technical Advisor at GiZ Uganda, told Renewables Rising that this includes seriously considering feed-in tariffs. These would guarantee a market for renewable energy generation, particularly benefiting smaller projects.

  • Mr Waibi holds a bachelor's in statistics and a master's degree in energy economics. He has over five years of experience working in the energy sector and also lectures in business at Makerere University.

  • Developing renewable energy generation capacity is ineffective without upgrading the power infrastructure, he says. These two aspects must be developed in tandem.

  • Click here to read more on our conversation

The next three months are packed with over 30 events for energy professionals to attend. We also list energy-related events, including mining and technology. Kenya leads in hosting 13 events. Its geographic location and progressive energy policies are making it a key player in hosting events. South Africa and Nigeria follow, each hosting five events.

  • Energy professionals and investors across Africa are meeting to discuss not only energy but also environmental and social governance issues. Youths have an event to share their perspectives and opinions.

  • These events have been critical in pushing for unified policies and promoting cross-border electricity trading. Adjacent events have allowed stakeholders to seek out partners in emerging technologies such as AI.

  • See where energy professionals are congregating here

Husk Power's Systems Nigeria Country Manager shaking hands with the IFC representative after signing a $5 million loan

Jobs

👷🏻‍♀️ Apply for Kenitra’s Quality Engineer role (Morocco)

👨🏼‍💻 Lead Tana’s software engineering operations (Kenya)

💼 Become Schneider Electric’s IT On-Site Tech Partner  (South Africa)

Various 

💰 Bboxx Nigeria gains access to $300 million solar financing facility

🌱 AXIAN Energy gets $5 million from the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa

🔌 REA commissions 2.5 MW solar project at Kaduna, Nigeria

Seen on LinkedIn 

Gillian-Alexandre, CEO of ENGIE Energy Access, says, “Africa’s Winning Hand Must Be Powered from the Bottom Up.”