Kenya and Ethiopia Sign Cross-Border Agreement

Kenya and Ethiopia have signed a UN-backed trade deal worth $200m (£130m) in a bid to ease cross-border conflict. President Uhuru Kenyatta and Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn agreed the deal in the border town of Moyale. The deal aims to tackle youth unemployment by creating jobs in the energy, mining and livestock industries. Tensions between rival ethnic groups have risen due to lack of land and water. There was a heavy security presence ahead of the meeting on.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 9th December 2015

Tanzania: Dar Keen on Transparency in Mining, Gas Deals

According to reports published by the Tanzania Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (TEITI) revenues earned included tax, levies, royalties and other charges. TEITI is a multi-stakeholder initiative that aims to increase transparency and accountability in the extractive industries in Tanzania. The government is committed to the principles and criteria of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a global standard for revenue transparency and a global.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 9th December 2015

Africa’s DoE embarks on solar geyser procurement

 The South African Department of Energy (DoE) has issued the request for bids of solar water heater systems as part of a national solar geyser roll-out.   The systems are to be procured in phases and with a number of them having been installed under a rebate scheme previously administered by Eskom, the plan envisions raising the total installed base to 1.75-million by procuring a total of 1.25-million systems by 2019.   Solar water heater stakeholders in December.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 9th December 2015

Africa to add 3 GW of power to national grid

 Egypt says it will add 3 GW of power to national grid in the coming year in a bid to reduce power deficit facing the country Power.   This comes barely after the country’s business community called for quick response to the current unending power shortages that have hampered heavy industry in recent years, the electricity minister said on Sunday.   Falling oil and gas production coupled with rising consumption have turned Egypt from an energy exporter into a.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 9th December 2015

Construction industry in Africa to grow by 8% in 2016 says report

 Construction industry in Egypt  has been projected to grow by eight per cent in 2016 after an estimated 9.8 per cent in 2015, the Egyptian Ministry of Finance has reported. The report reveals that the growth due to the steady support of the sector by public private partnerships (PPPs) and the growing infrastructure project pipeline in the country reinforce our positive outlook for Egypt’s construction industry in 2016, said a report by Business.... Read more »

Posted on : Wednesday , 9th December 2015

Standard Gauge Railway construction project in Kenya to be extended

 China has pledged to boost the extension of the Standard Gauge Railway construction project in Kenya from the capital Nairobi to the Rift Valley. Kenya will receive a $1.5 billion loan from China   Statehouse Spokesman Manoah Esipisu confirmed the news and said that Kenya will finance 15% towards the project while the rest will be from China Eximbank.   “Kenya and China signed a financing package for the extension of SGR, China Eximbank will provide a.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 8th December 2015

Construction of 8,000 kilometres of tarmac roads in Kenya to begin

 Construction of  8,000 kilometres of tarmac roads in Kenya is set to begin in a week’s time to ease transportation of goods and passengers and boost the country’s economy, Transport Principal Secretary John Mosonik  has said.   He said that the construction of the tarmac roads in Kenya will involve the tarmacking of roads in various parts of the country; about 16 Nairobi-Mombasa highways to ease transportation of goods and.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 8th December 2015

Dam in Kenya to be constructed with World Bank support

 The World Bank will support the construction of a dam in Kenya  to provide enough water to residents. This follows a financial agreement that was signed by Kenya and the  World Bank to the tune of  US$ 200m to help in the  construction of Mwache dam in Kwale County.   The agreement which was signed during climate talks in Paris is part of a larger project under the Paris Pact Flagship Project that targets to build resilient water systems in.... Read more »

Posted on : Tuesday , 8th December 2015

East Africa’s Potential Whets Energy Investors’ Appetites

Africa’s appetite for gasoil and petrol is expected to climb by as much as 8 per cent, while demand for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has hit double digits. The continent’s expanding home-grown energy supply will help to satisfy some of the burgeoning demand, in a process that is creating opportunities for investors, especially in East Africa. Africa produced 8.2 million barrels per day of crude last year, with 76 per cent coming from Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt and Angola,.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 7th December 2015

Energy and Infrastructure Take 42 Per Cent of Kenya External Loan

The bulk of donor funding to Kenya goes to energy and infrastructure projects, a latest National Treasury debt report released in Nairobi showed Wednesday. The report says energy and infrastructure sector takes 42 percent of the cash Kenya gets from its bilateral and multilateral lenders, with the external debt currently standing at 14.7 billion U.S. dollars. Kenya is undertaking dozens of projects in the energy and transport sectors. In the transport sector, they include the.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 7th December 2015

Africa’s largest wind farm inaugurated

 A 200MW wind farm in Egypt’s Gulf of El-Zayt, touted to be the largest in Africa, has been inaugurated wind CGPGrey flickrHundred turbines, each with a capacity of 20MW, have been installed in the wind farm.  The wind farm cost US$359mn and has been financed by the European Union (EU), Germany’s KfW and the European Investment Bank (EIB). With a 100 turbines, the wind farm generate up to 800MW per year, which could aid around 50,000 people with power..... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 7th December 2015

Harnessing ocean power to provide heat and air conditioning

 The Cape Town V&A Waterfront’s Silo District is recognised as one of the most advanced and environmentally-friendly developments, not just in South Africa but throughout the continent Evergreen chillerThe AquaEdge 23XRV chiller.  The Silo District project is due for completion in 2017, once an additional four silo developments are fully-operational. A division of United Technologies Corp, heating and air-conditioning solutions provider Carrier is playing a.... Read more »

Posted on : Monday , 7th December 2015