Being forced to use generators to supplement erratic power supplies is a heavy burden for African business Menye Ndzana, a welder-cum-musician popularly known as Le Grand Barack, suddenly rose to national prominence in...
electricity
China’s billion dollar dirty coal projects
China is investing heavily in coal-fired plants in Africa, even as it prioritises renewable energy at home As China pushes clean energy policies at home, it is exporting high-polluting coal fired thermal power...
Wind and solar change the game
As DRC’s Inga 3 hydropower project falters, questions are being asked about the financial risk to both host and its main client, South Africa Seven years ago, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) proposed the Inga 3...
A very expensive white elephant
The Stiegler’s Gorge project is a 48-year-old folly that will not deliver the energy security that President John Magufuli seems convinced it will Every aspirant dictator seems to want at least one Soviet-style...
Book review
The Political Economy of Energy in Sub-Saharan Africa Edited by Andrew Emmanuel Okem and Lucky E Asuelime. Routledge, London and New York; 2018 In pre-industrial society, one used wood and fire for heat and light,...
Charcoal: vast, vital and often criminalised
If forests are properly managed and harvested, charcoal could be a renewable energy source that does not destroy the environment. Charcoal is one of the most important commodities in sub-Saharan Africa. In southern and...
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