Despite Africa having 60% of the best solar resources in the world, it only has 1% of installed solar PV capacity. And some 600 million people in Africa don't have access to energy- with detrimental developmental consequences.

The need is huge, and so too is the opportunity to finance Africa’s renewable energy transition. Revego's CIO says the total investment for renewable energy in Sub-Saharan Africa for the next eight years could reach about 193 billion US dollars.

In episode 9 of The Current, we discuss what needs to be done to mobilise the necessary capital to electrify Africa. Host, Iman Rappetti, is joined by Ana Hajduka Shields, CEO of Africa GreenCo, Ziyaad Sarang, Revego's CIO and Brian Irvine, Investec's global head of Export and Agency Finance.

00:00: Intro

02:25: Meet the guests

02:58: All the resources and so little power

05:25: What's the cause of Africa's energy deficit?

06:34: What's got in the way of investment in energy infrastructure?

07:44: Moving away from fossil fuels

08:26: Africa to leapfrog to green industrialisation

09:32: The "Beautiful convergence" of climate concerns, economics and energy efficiencies

11:19: Africa's riches need to be harnessed

12:19: Innovative financing: export finance credit agency

13:14: Acre Import Capital - A real-world example

16:24: Green bonds to build infrastructure

17:15: What about equity markets?

19:13: Education is a key factor to attract capital

22:30: Regional power pools and trading of energy

24:19: South Africa to benefit from cross-border trading

25:41: C&I project for commercial off-take

26:10: In crisis comes opportunity- 193bn dollars in opportunity

This podcast was brought to you by Investec's Export and Agency Finance team to find out more click here: https://www.investec.com/en_za/investec-for-corporates/finance/export-and-agency-finance.html Investec Export and Agency finance · Investec Focus Radio SA