Business
Wind Power begining to get traction in Africa
According to an African Development Bank study of 76 wind projects, two thirds are pending. Liberalization of electricity markets has helped prise open the sluice gates for investment.
“The state still plays a big role in a lot of the countries,” Mutambatsere told reporters. “But a number of countries have liberalized to some extent.”
North Africa – including Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia, have led the way. But sub-Saharan Africa is catching up.
This year saw the first large commercial wind farm in the region come on line, a 52 megawatt project in Ethiopia.
Further south, the continent’s heaviest carbon emitter South Africa is a striking example of the sector’s growth.
The coal-rich nation, now gunning for an extra 18 gigawatts of capacity from renewables such as wind, has opened power production projects to private bidders for the first time. The first bidding round of 28 projects drew US$5 billion in investments, according to the energy ministry.
“There’s a huge boom going on in South Africa in wind and renewables,” said South African Wind Energy Association CEO Johan van den Berg. “South Africa previously had eight operative wind towers or turbines and there’s about 250 under construction at the moment.”
