Investment environment key to closing Africa’s energy gap

[Standard Bank Team]

Power outages cost more than 5% of gross domestic product (GDP) in Malawi, Uganda and South Africa. This and other problems caused by Africa’s inadequate power infrastructure have resulted in a strategic financing relationship between Standard Bank Group and General Electric.

We reaffirmed our partnership to bridge Africa’s energy financing gap at a Power Financing roundtable in Washington DC, USA. A financing agreement of US$350-million has already been confirmed by Standard Bank Group and General Electric.

This great move forms part of the US-Africa Leaders’ Summit, the largest gathering of African heads of state and government as well as key stakeholders to visit Washington on any one occasion.

We are committed to improve access to power infrastructure in Africa. All in all, Sub-Saharan Africa requires more than US$300-billion in investment to achieve universal electricity by 2030. The partnership between Standard Bank Group and General Electric is an example of finding investment opportunities outside the natural resources sector.

Global investors are also realising the potential benefits of investments in sectors such as power and infrastructure.

We hope this solution based partnership will also encourage more innovative investments that aim to solve structural issues in the continent. Energy demand is expected to grow at an average annual rate 3% over the next two decades.

To read more about General Electric got to www.ge.com.

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