Sub-Saharan Africa is emerging as a new market for renewable energy technologies such as onshore wind, small-scale and utility-scale solar and geothermal power, according to research company Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
Its latest analysis suggests that 1.8GW of renewable power capacity (excluding large hydro-electric projects) will be commissioned in the region in 2014. Bloomberg New Energy Finance forecasts that investment in clean energy excluding large hydro in Sub-Saharan Africa will be US$ 5.9 billion this year, down 5% on 2013's figure of US$ 6.2 billion, but that it will accelerate to US$ 7.7 billion in 2016. The three largest markets for utility-scale renewable power over the 2014-16 period are forecast to be South Africa with 3.9GW likely to be installed, the largest part of which will be wind, followed by solar PV with a smaller amount of solar thermal; Kenya with 1.4GW, mainly geothermal and wind; and Ethiopia with nearly 570MW, largely wind with some geothermal. Some other countries such as Nigeria are seeing ambitious plans mooted for gigawatts of renewable power, but have yet to put in place the stable policy regime to reassure investors.