2023-06-01 22:00:28
Develop sustainable energies on the continent. This is a major goal of the UN and many development institutions. However, accelerating investments in this area is not so obvious. Confidence in companies, viability of projects, return on investment. There are still many questions. But projects are paving the way in the field and tend to reassure.
In 2016, the Africa REN company inaugurated with the Senegalese authorities the first industrial-scale solar power plant in West Africa. ” For donors, this posed a number of questions, like any somewhat new project », recalls Gilles Parmentier, founder and president of Africa REN. ” These are contracts that are a little long, these are 25-year contracts, with loans over long periods, of 17-18 years. And so, obviously, everyone is very attentive and very concerned about setting up these projects. »
Seven years later, Africa REN completes its first investment phase. It is launching a second train in which local investors are increasing their participation. ” The Caisse des Dépôts du Senegal was at 30% in our investment vehicle and there it rises to 40% “recalls Gilles Parmentier. ” This is a good signal both of Senegal’s confidence in this type of project and also the fact that these are projects that can be perceived as attractive financial assets for institutional investors. So we see more and more players turning to this type of project, because it works, because the States and the electricity companies pay for the electricity that is sold to them and it creates a framework for investment that is interesting and profitable. »
Less than a quarter of financial institutions have defined a decarbonization trajectory for their activities
However, reluctance persists. A barometer produced by Deloitte and the Africa Financial Industry Summit highlights that the financial industry is still struggling to play a leading role in the energy transition. Less than a quarter of financial institutions have defined a decarbonization trajectory for their activities, underlines Aristide Ouattara. He is a partner in charge of the financial industry for Deloitte Francophone Africa.
« This situation must change because in order to be able to support customers and partners, these financial institutions themselves must be exemplary and must integrate a culture of energy transition within their population. “, he explains. ” It is thanks to this that they will have collaborators who are aware, who are able to understand the needs of customers and partners. The financial industry will be much more effective if it transforms itself by equipping itself internally with skills to be able to understand the financial instruments that make it possible to finance the energy transition and also understand the language of this entire ecosystem that speaks of the energy transition. »
An interest of the sector which today focuses primarily on solar.
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