CrossBoundary Energy

After the somewhat disappointing resolution of funding agreements at COP29, it is tempting to become despondent about the prospect of meeting the Paris climate goals. But the private sector is stepping in to take up the slack, and innovative blended finance solutions could provide an answer. In our interview with Nchimunya Chipo Hamukoma from The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) earlier this year, we discussed how innovative funding solutions could help to provide the US$1.4 trillion – US$1.9 trillion annual investment required for the energy transition. Read the full article in the CrossBoundary Quarterly on Blended Finance: https://lnkd.in/dUkcNPgN

⚡ 🪫 How African Utilities Can Thrive in the Age of Distributed Energy 🪫 ⚡ African energy utility leaders face the dual challenge of maintaining functional national energy systems while transforming them for the future. In Africa, the traditional central grid model is struggling, with inefficiencies and frequent power outages costing African countries up to 2% of their annual GDP. The rise of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) offers a path to reliability and savings for power-hungry customers. In her latest paper, our Chief Regulatory Officer Tessa Lee invites African utility leaders to learn from the transformation of the telecommunications sector: the state-owned telcos who adapted to mobile technology thrived, while those who clung to outdated models became obsolete. Encouraging examples of progressive utility leadership are emerging, such as South Africa's lifting of the cap on DER capacity, leading to a surge in projects and improved performance. The article is an open invitation to African utility leaders to engage with us in open debate about how we built a future-fit, resilient energy system. Read & download the paper here: https://lnkd.in/dXkq4AYk

CrossBoundary Energy secures US$140M senior debt from Standard Bank Group to expand renewable portfolio in Africa 🌍 The groundbreaking transaction is a significant step towards scaling our renewable energy portfolio across Africa. 🔋 Key Highlights: - The US$140M senior debt from the Standard Bank of South Africa as the first tranche in a broader mandate with Standard Bank - Scalable infrastructure financing addresses a crucial barrier for the African market to access affordable and reliable power through supporting CrossBoundary’s energy-as-a-service offering - The transaction is an example of commercial funders driving renewable energy adoption and the energy transition We are grateful to our partners at Standard Bank for their support in closing this transaction that will help us to expand our portfolio across Africa. Read the full release here: https://lnkd.in/dnm9SNWh

Distributed energy resources present a huge opportunity to unlock unrealized benefits in African industry. In recent decades, governments in Africa have gradually moved to liberalize energy sectors to improve service delivery and service a diverse customer base. While energy sector planning and policy remain largely in the domain of national governments and regulators, there’s an emerging trend of decentralizing energy approvals in a few African countries. Our regulatory team has noticed this decentralizing trend in three key markets: Kenya, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In our latest article in CrossBoundary Quarterly, Henry Carr and Albert M. Nganga explore these markets and the effects of the decentralization of energy approvals. Decentralizing energy approvals could have a positive impact on the speed and accessibility of distributed energy resources. To truly harness unrealized benefits in African industrial sectors, both federal and local authorities need to work together to ensure clear and beneficial energy approvals. Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/dQXzWYCF

Today, we celebrate Africa Industrialization Day - a day to highlight the power of industry to transform African economies and create a sustainable future. Industrialization is at the heart of Africa’s economic transformation and our work enables Africa’s industrial backbone to thrive through clean and reliable power.   We work in several industrial sectors, including cement, mining, steel, and packaging, which variously contribute to fostering growth in Africa's industrial sector. For example: - At National Cement Company in Nakuru, Kenya, we developed a solar PV facility featuring bifacial solar modules and single-axis trackers. This setup optimizes energy production, integrating seamlessly into the factory’s 10kV distribution system. The clean energy generated supports critical operations from kilns to packaging, reducing emissions while powering infrastructure development - We have implemented solar PV systems for Maisha Packaging Company at their Nakuru and Lukenya plants, providing 15–16% of their energy needs from renewables. These systems ensure reliable, cost-effective power while enabling the production of high-quality, recyclable industrial bags essential to Kenya’s economy - We are helping Nigerian Breweries Plc achieve their sustainability targets with clean energy solutions. Supplying a mix of roof- and ground-mounted solar as well as battery storage solutions, we will provide two of their breweries with ~20% of their power requirements from renewable energy We’re committed to ensuring energy is reliable, clean, and affordable. What are your thoughts about supporting African industrialization?   #AfricaIndustrializationDay #RenewableEnergy #SustainableDevelopment 

Last week, Albert M. Nganga, our permitting and regulatory manager, moderated a session on decentralized energy solutions at the PowerElec Kenya conference. The session highlighted important aspects of DER optimization and included experts Eng. Maxwell Ngala PE, MIEK, PMP® from RTI International, Ombajo Vincent Gedion, PMP® CEM® MBA from Collective Energy Africa, Raylen N. from Sunwoda, and Michael Bekker from Canadian Solar. Key takeaways include: 🔋 Advancements in DER technologies: - Significant progress in battery technology is paving the way for smaller, cost-effective, and higher-capacity systems, driving substantial growth in East Africa - Integration of diverse technologies, including AI for demand management and operational monitoring, is boosting the performance and reliability of energy systems 🏛️ Policy and governance synergy: - Kenya's devolved governance structure is a strong enabler for localized energy solutions, with the Constitution providing a solid foundation for policy development - Harmonizing national and county laws is crucial, especially for infrastructure like EV charging networks and battery-swapping stations 🌐 Regional and integrated planning opportunities: - Expanding energy planning beyond national borders to align with COMESA and regional frameworks can enhance scalability and collaboration ⚡ Unbundling of KPLC: - Panelists discussed the efficiency gains from allowing private companies to participate in electricity distribution - The need for KPLC to adopt cost-reflective tariffs was emphasized What were your takeaways from the conference?

Our mission to make cleaner, more affordable energy accessible to industrial businesses in Africa wouldn't be possible without the steadfast support from our investors and partners. Ensuring that our projects uphold the highest environmental, health, and safety standards during construction and operation is fundamental to the value of our assets and their impact on our clients. It was a great privilege to recently host one of our main investors, Norfund, at our renewable energy facility in Fort Dauphin, Madagascar. We loved the chance to show our funders the tangible evidence of the work we have carried out. This project for Rio Tinto's QMM mine in Madagascar is one of our most complex projects operationally, and yet we are close to completing this ambitious project that will supply at least 60% of the mine's electricity with renewables. This is only possible through our team's dedication, service providers, and investors. Here's to watching the renewable dawn continue to rise!

It's been a productive week at #COP29! Our team has engaged with government leaders and key stakeholders on leveraging renewable energy for industry to accelerate climate action while supporting industrial growth across emerging economies. Our Energy Policy Director, Henry Carr, spoke on a panel at the Malagasy Pavilion with Madagascar's Director of Hydrocarbons, Razafimamonjy Jinot, to showcase our renewable energy partnership with Rio Tinto in Fort Dauphin. Our project has enabled low-impact energy generation, local jobs, and economic growth at the company's mining facility. In our most recent paper, "Wired for change: how African utilities must adapt in the age of distributed energy", we invite energy utilities in Africa to engage in the conversation about distributed energy and its benefits for economies - and utilities themselves. The transformation of these organizations will be central to the rollout of renewable energies on the continent, and we are excited to engage with them as they take the journey.

Wired for change: adapting African utilities for the age of distributed energy 🌍 ⚡ Leaders of African utilities have an almost impossible job: running a functional national energy system while also remaking it. In this paper, Chief Regulatory Officer Tessa Lee explores how utilities might take the first steps in adapting today's centralized energy system into the flexible, industry-focused energy landscape of tomorrow. Lee explores how telecommunications utilities found themselves at a similar crossroads thirty years ago, facing the rise of mobile phone technology. Some telcos adapted and survived - those who failed to do so are now obsolete. The challenges energy utility executives face are not unique to any one country or Africa. They are also likely to become more complex. Distributed energy resources (DERs) are emerging as the best and cheapest way to power commercial & industrial power consumers, historically utilities' top clients. How should they move forward? Key insights in the paper include: 📶 ☎ Mobile technology ushered in a new era that challenged the very essence of state-owned telecommunications companies 🔌 🏭 Distributed energy is starting to reshape the African energy system similarly by providing better reliability and cost savings vs. electricity delivered by centralized grids 🤝 🏛 Utility leaders are missing an opportunity to engage directly with the private sector providers of new, distributed technologies as a way to future-proof their business If you're in the African energy space working at a utility or alongside one, we hope this article opens a long-delayed conversation.

Senior Developer Anne Gakingo has worked on various commercial and industrial (C&I) storage projects throughout her career. Join her in a webinar with ESI Africa and Jinko Solar Co., Ltd. Solar as she discusses the lessons she has learned about the role of energy storage in remote, hybrid, and off-grid C&I systems. The webinar will cover topics such as technical advancements in storage technology, the economic benefits of integrating BESS into C&I projects, funding, financing, and regulatory frameworks. Join Anne to see how your operation can benefit from energy storage! Register to join the webinar here: https://lnkd.in/dgpSNVj6