China’s played a pivotal role in financing a sizable portion of African energy infrastructure in recent years. But now amid the economic crisis brought on by COVID-19 and a sharp downturn in Chinese support for energy projects in Africa and elsewhere around the world, how will the continent build the badly-needed power in the post-pandemic era.
The Executive Director of Botswana’s Shumba Energy, Thapelo Mokhathi, joins Eric & Cobus to discuss where he sees the African power market going and the tensions over whether investments should be made in coal or renewable energy.
Show Notes:
- Boston University Global Development Policy Center: China’s Global Energy Finance 2019 by Xinyue Ma, Kevin P. Gallagher & Yanan Guo
- The Diplomat: China’s Empty Promises of Green Energy for Africa by Jill van de Walle
- NS Energy: Panacea or plague: Is China the answer to Africa’s energy access woes? by Felix Todd
Thapelo Mokhati holds a degree from the Management Accounting and Executive Program in Mining and Minerals (Wits). Over the last 10 years, he has been an executive director of various junior mining mompanies in various African countries. In 2004, he co-founded BSC Resources Ltd, a junior exploration company that grew to have significant assets in nickel, copper and coal across South Africa.
