Africa’s untapped power potential, regional collaboration and ways of attracting foreign investment will take centre stage at what is set to be the biggest African Utility Week and Clean Power Africa conference and exhibition to date.

Event organiser Spintelligent event director Evan Schiff tells Engineering News that preparations are in place for the fifteenth yearly event, which will be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) from May 12 to 14.

“We have expanded to fill the entire floor space at the CTICC – of more than 10 000 m2 – which is a first for us. “We have also expanded our conference offering, having added an additional conference forum, the Finance and Investment forum, which will enable us to cover a broader scope of topics and have greater representation across various spheres of business,” he explains.

He states that Spintelligent expanded the exhibition and conferencing space in response to market demand, as the organiser received numerous requests from companies and organisations wanting to be part of the event.

“I think this is an indication of a shift in the perception of Africa and an increased focus on the continent,” says Schiff.

He partly attributes this shift to the continent’s political landscape maturing as it allows for stability in regulation and planning. “With that comes the ability for foreign direct investment in infrastructure development, which substantially helps with job creation and the growth of the economy,” says Schiff, citing the way in which the Nigerian elections were concluded as an example.

He adds that the event is expected to attract more than 5 000 attendees and will feature 250 exhibitors, 190 speakers, eight conferences, free technical workshops on the expo floor, three high-profile plenary sessions and the coveted Industry Awards gala dinner.

Schiff also highlights that this year was the first time that the 1 000-delegate preregistration threshold was reached as early as three months before the start of the event.

The theme of the conference’s opening plenary session is ‘Africa is open for business’.

New Forum
Schiff notes that the Finance and Investment forum will focus on project finance, risk management, independent power producers and ongoing projects as case studies, with a special focus on renewable energy and innovative ways of financing green energy, while creating sustainable jobs.

Included in the forum’s programme are case study presentations on Kenya’s Lake Turkana wind power project, to be presented by investment company Harith General Partners senior energy investment director Erik Wandrag; and on Rwanda’s Gigawatt Global, Scatec Solar and Norfund photovoltaic park project, to be presented by multinational renewable-energy company Gigawatt Global Coöperatief UA MD Chaim Motzen.

The forum will also include a presentation, titled ‘Develop your clean energy projects into bankable opportunities’, which will be presented by US government agency Overseas Private Investment Corporation Africa MD Peter Ballinger.

It will also incorporate a panel discussion under the theme ‘The fundamentals you must consider for structuring a bankable power purchase agreement (PPA)’, which will be moderated by global legal practice Norton Rose Fulbright Africa director Gregory Nott.

It will also include an open-floor discussion on fixed tariffs, foreign exchange, transmission and grid-connection risk, offtaker payment support, dispatch risk, put and call option agreements and other PPA elements.

Schiff adds that the 2015 event will also include a return of the invitation-only Utility CEO Forum, where C-level executives from Africa’s leading utilities will discuss pressing topics in the industry to accelerate cross-border collaboration, development plans and advance the regional centres of excellence throughout Africa.

This forum will host executives from countries such as Nigeria, Uganda, Namibia, Ghana, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Schiff tells Engineering News that US President Barack Obama’s private sector-led Power Africa initiative will be showcased in Africa for the first time at the 2015 Africa Utility Week. Power Africa is aimed at improving access to power in all of sub-Saharan Africa, which normally takes African companies and stakeholders to the US for conferencing,

Power Africa is working to add more than 30 000 MW of cleaner, more efficient electricity generation capacity to sub-Saharan Africa, while increasing electricity access by connecting 60-million new homes and businesses to the grid by 2020. It will host a pavilion as a country partner and have an exhibition, with a representative who will address the conference.

“These are business people coming to the continent for business opportunities and not just for goodwill. This is a further indication that the continent has ample business opportunities,” concludes Schiff.