Just Energy Transition: Reflections on the Africa Energy Forum 2022

The next conference in 2023 will be held in Nairobi, Kenya.

Bhavtik Vallabhjee, Head of Power at Absa Group, attended & participated in the conference. Bhavtik, a seasoned Corporate and Investment Banker based in London with deep sector insight working across the product suite - and extensive experience in the Middle East and Africa - will share his thought on the key the themes emanating from the conference and issues arising in the energy sector for Africa and particularly, South Africa.

In conversation with Peter Attard Montalto, a Director of the South African Chamber of Commerce UK, he will cover advancements in new technologies, key themes and pertinent expectations for COP27, deliverables from COP26 and the de-carbonising and Just Energy Transition (JET) for Africa. Other solutions for South Africa will be explored – both to generate power in the short and medium term, and to distribute energy employing smart technology to monitor usage and facilitate billing and payments. Other new technologies discussed for Africa include solar generated hydrogen from which low-carbon ammonia can be created, which is a commonly used fertiliser.

Increasing energy costs, the use of high carbon energy sources as short-term energy stop-gaps and inflationary pressures caused by the war in Ukraine are significant challenges for Africa. The question is whether these will negatively impact the opportunity to generate green solutions to the energy crisis. Another decisive factor will be the level of government regulation over private sector energy generation and their willingness to enter into public-private partnerships with domestic and global producers.

Watch the replay below: