Syda Bbumba, Uganda's finance minister

The Ministry of Energy is to start implementation of a new rural electrification project in March 2011, officials have said.

Mark Tanton, Chairperson, SAWEA

The government's integrated resource plan (IRP), expected to be released in September, has had little input from consumer groups and civil society.

Ryan Hammond, Managing Director, Solaire Direct SA

Solaire Direct SA managing director Ryan Hammond believes it's only a matter of three years before renewable energy becomes cheaper than traditional fossil fuel electricity.

SPM is a leading service provider in providing turnkey primary plant services to the electricity supply industry and industrial customers. Services provided by SPM include the transportation, installation, testing and commissioning of HV circuit breakers and power transformers.

The South African Wind Energy Association (Sawea) on Thursday said that information from wind energy project developers in South Africa showed that 6 000 MW of wind energy was "ready to be commissioned right now".

The residential sector in South Africa consumes 17% of the electrical energy. More than 70% of this electricity is generated using fossil fuels which contribute immensely to environmental pollution and global warming.

Last year’s African Utility Week (AUW) was a landmark event for the African electricity industry. Beyond the presentations and the extraordinary exhibition, talk in the corridors, over lunch and during the ceremonial events, was focused on a new future.

By Alistair Wray, Dfid 

The Infrastructure Consortium for Africa held its 4th Annual Meeting in Tokyo in March. While Africa’s infrastructure needs are daunting, ICA members heard how commitments to make new investments have increased dramatically over the past year. The ICA was established after the 2005 Gleneagles G8 summit to facilitate more and better coordinated investment in infrastructure in Africa to achieve the economic growth and poverty reduction necessary to meet the Millennium Development Goals.

Hugo van Vuuren, one of the Lebone Solutions founders

A new, off-grid lighting technology looks set to take developing countries with low electrification rates by storm. While many off grid electrification projects harness wind or solar power, a project by a group from Cambridge, Mass, is developing a fuel cell that operates on bacteria from soil!