The wind sector in Africa continues to make progress, but an expert from the African Development Bank (AfDB) said it is still underdeveloped for certain funding structures.
Principal regional economist Dr. Emelly Mutambatsere said in the initial stages of the wind market development, donor financing is very visible and as the market matures. “However, the market has not yet developed to the point where it can be fully funded by the private sector, therefore development finance institutions remain major players,” she said.
By the end of 2011 the developed potential on the continent saw a strong concentration of wind energy capacity in three North African countries, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia. Mutambatsere said: “Egypt held half of the continent’s total installed capacity, followed by Morocco with 40%, and Tunisia with 5%. Outside of North Africa, there is commercial capacity in Cape Verde, and limited capacity in South Africa, Kenya, Mauritius, Eritrea, and Mozambique.”
According to the AdB Principal Regional Economist, Africa’s wind energy market has developed at a pace similar to that observed in leading markets at the early stages of their industry development. She adds: “Despite this progress and the presence of significant potential on the continent, we should not expect wind to take over conventional energy resources in terms of share in the electricity generation mix, as key structural characteristics of the market affect both efficacy in addressing the energy access challenge, and competitiveness of wind, relative to non-renewable energy resources.”
As co-author of a comprehensive study for the AdB on the Development of Wind Energy in Africa, Mutambatsere is a speaker on the topic at the upcoming Clean Power Africa that is taking place in Cape Town from May 14-15.
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