The Africa Energy Indaba has been in a long-term strategic partnership with the South African Electrotechnical Export Council (SAEEC) with the joint purpose of increasing understanding of and accelerating growth in Africa’s rapidly changing and lucrative energy space. For years, the innovative partnership has leveraged the respective strengths of both entities to create compelling value for those with an interest in Africa’s evolving energy sector.
Established in 1999, the SAEEC is a public-private partnership between The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) and the private sector in the electrotechnical sector. The SAEEC’s mandate is to facilitate the international trade of member companies, increase export sales and profile to global markets South Africa’s competence in the electrotechnical sector. The competence of member companies are in various subsectors including electrical engineering where companies manufacture goods and provide services in the generation, distribution, and transmission of electricity. Other sectors represented are in information and digital technology, telecoms and electronics.
SAEEC member companies have a proven track record of providing a wide range of electricity infrastructure products and services across Africa. They are highly regarded as solution providers for power and telecommunications infrastructure projects across the continent. South African firms conform to global standards and are partners of choice in enabling Africa to meet the continent’s needs.
Ms. Chiboni Evans, Chief Executive Officer, SAEEC remarks, “The SAEEC has long been an advocate of Africa looking within itself to develop solutions for African challenges and it is my hope that the thought leaders and decision makers from the various African energy agencies and utilities engage the programmes and events to be presented during Africa Energy Indaba 2023 to deliberate on issues, challenges and accomplishments in Africa’s Energy sector. As Africans the response we present to resolve Africa’s energy challenges must always address the underlying socio developmental impact of energy access and the need for reliable and sustainable energy generation to allow for accelerated industrial and economic growth.”
Evans adds, “The South African Electrotechnical Export Council, as Trade Association Partner at AEI, looks forward to engaging with all delegates and participants. We are profiling a significant number of companies drawn from our membership base. We will also this year have a focus on Renewable Energy companies, particularly the Small Medium and Micro Enterprises that have supported major wind and solar projects through the supply of components and the rendering of maintenance and other engineering services”
Africa’s Energy infrastructure build will be primarily focussed on renewables. The African Development Bank (AfDB) estimates that an average annual investment of 30-40 billion USD until 2025 is required to realise it’s New Deal on Energy for Africa. This investment is required to build infrastructure covering generation, inter-connectors, transmission and distribution (T&D), mini-grids and off-grid access options.
The priority during AEI 2023 will be to showcase our nation’s renewable energy competencies and present these as a model for the rest of Africa. We see South Africa as a key player in the infrastructure development required to drive the energy transition on the Continent.
AEI’s principal focus is to define and promote the African energy agenda through development, deal-making, and private sector participation. Moreover, the event will facilitate discussions around the energy transition and engage African energy sector leaders as they articulate with the solutions for Africa’s future. AEI 2023 presents a unique and interactive networking experience in which international energy stakeholders can assemble and participate in the continent’s transformation.
