Renewable Energy Finance Forum Africa - Postponed

8:15AM Registration and coffee

9:00AM Chairperson's opening remarks

9:15AM Recent developments in African renewables: Is Africa on a sustainable path to transforming the way energy is generated?

• North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and South Africa: Who is leading the way in renewable energy infrastructure development?

• How achievable are African Renewable Energy Initiative targets in adding 300GW of renewable energy to the continent?

• Are low oil and gas prices affecting investment in renewables?

9:45AM Exploring pricing, tenors and terms in renewable energy infrastructure finance: How does access to debt markets differ within Africa?

• How do international banks view investment in renewables on the continent? How are they working with local banks to provide suitable financial structures?

• Is access to long-term debt going to improve with a higher quality of projects and credit-worthy off-takers becoming available?

• Are we going to see a shift away from a dollar denominated debt market?

10:30AM What are the attributes of a bankable renewable energy project across Africa?

• How does investor appetite differ between North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Africa?

• Why does only a small percentage of projects reach financial close? What can be done to improve this?

• A closer look at what policy and investment frameworks are required across the continent to increase foreign investment

11:10AM Morning coffee and networking break

11:40AM Analysing different types of private sector involvement in African renewables: What can be done to encourage further investment?

• What are the expectations of private funds, investors and sponsors in renewable transactions?
• How can creditworthy off-takers promote development of renewables? Who are they?
• Lake Turkana: a one-off or the first of many large scale private investments in African renewables?
• Managing risk in an uncertain environment: How is investor confidence being boosted?

12:15PM Unlocking institutional investor liquidity: What needs to be done to increase allocations towards African renewables?

• Is this the ideal environment to invest in renewables with green energy targets and falling oil prices?
• How does investing in African renewables fit into portfolios for local and international pension funds? Who is leading the way?
• Is South Africa leading the trend in local institutional investment in renewable energy infrastructure?2.15pm

1:00PM Lunch

2:15PM Developers’ perspectives: Exploring the challenges in financing a renewable project in Sub-Saharan Africa

• What support do developers need to finance a higher number of projects across the continent?
• As costs become lower, how are developers competing with other traditional forms of power? 
• Are existing tariffs sustainable for long term power generation?
• Can developers work together to ensure fair PPAs are created across the board?

3:00PM Powering North Africa: Exploring the successes of financing the Moroccan renewables sector

• Does Ouarzazate (Noor) Solar Power Station demonstrate the ability of the Moroccan Government to deliver large-scale projects to international standards?
• After the success of solar, is Morocco’s wind sector going to see a higher level of interest going forward?
• Can similar financial structures be applied to fund renewable projects on a similar scale across North Africa?

3:45PM Afternoon refreshments and networking break

4:00PM Networking Roundtables

The conference will break out into roundtable discussions, focussed on the below outlined jurisdictions. Led by an expert moderator, the roundtables will create an informal environment to discuss current issues, raise questions and engage in debate on future opportunities.

• South Africa
• Zambia
• Kenya
• Morocco
• Nigeria
• Ethiopia
• Rwanda
• Tanzania
• Sierra Leone
• Egypt
• Madagascar
• Namibia

5:30PM Close of conference followed by drinks reception

8:30AM Morning Coffee

9:00AM Chairperson’s opening remarks

9:15AM Scaling Solar: After Zambia, to what extent does the programme have the potential to unlock investment across Sub-Saharan Africa?

• Exploring key challenges and lessons learnt from developing solar projects in Zambia
• How sustainable are prices of solar for long term generation? Are we seeing a solar energy bubble?
• Can the Scaling Solar model be applied to wind, storage or other renewable projects?

9:45AM South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Procurement Programme (“REIPPPP”): What lessons can we learn for the rest of Africa?

• Round 1 vs round 4: How did policy develop over the bidding rounds to create a more sustainable renewable energy investment model?
• Bid pricing: How low is too low?
• What can we learn from the contingent liabilities evolving from the programme?

10:30AM To what extent are Development Financial Institutions (DFIs) and multilaterals necessary for financing successful renewable projects in Africa?

• How are DFIs working with sponsors to create more bankable projects across Africa?
• What guarantees can be offered to offset off-taker, currency and political risk?
• Can DFIs help with contingent liabilities from PPAs?
• Are multilaterals key to the development of a green bond market in Africa?

11:15AM Morning coffee and networking break

11:45AM Financing off-grid and microgrid renewables in Africa: The perfect solution to reducing the energy deficit in the region?

• Assessing investors’ appetite for innovative off-grid and microgrid projects across Africa
• Are innovations in consumer-led payment models the way forward for rural electrification? Is investment in these models considered low risk?
• How is the development in microgrid and nanogrid technology affecting the way such projects are financed?

12:30PM The case for local currency: Is the mitigation of exchange rate risk the perfect solution for the development of smaller projects in African renewables?

• To what extent is negotiating PPAs in local currency a good idea given FX volatility? How can local denominated PPAs ensure stability?
• Are there incentives for players to deal in local currency by unlocking and expanding local liquidity?
• Exploring the capability of local banks to provide debt financing in local currency

1:15PM Close of conference followed by lunch