The Cape Town International Convention Centre was a hive of activity during Enlit Africa as attendees explored Africa’s entire energy landscape between 7 and 9 June 2022.
With over 3,000 attendees representing 23 African utilities, 219 utility and municipality attendees, 154 speakers and seven country pavilions (Brazil, Taiwan, Switzerland, Belgium, Germany, the US and Canada), Enlit Africa solidified its position as Africa’s premier energy, power and water conference and exhibition.
Sponsored by GE Africa the first day’s opening keynote featured a welcome address by Jacob Mbele, Deputy Director General, Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy; and Eddie Andrews, Deputy Mayor of the City of Cape Town. GE’s Nosizwe Dlengezele, Regional Sales Executive, GE Gas Power, Sub-Saharan Africa, gave an insightful presentation on how different types of technology can assist communities who are affected by decarbonisation efforts and work towards a sustainable earth for all. The keynote panel was enriched by esteemed guests including John Morton, the US Department of Treasury’s first Climate Counselor; as well as Eskom Group CEO, André de Ruyter, who unpacked South Africa’s $8.5 billion energy transition deal signed at COP26 and what this finance package means for South Africa’s just energy transition away from coal to more sustainable energy sources.
Another insightful Enlit Africa session:
Be a champion: Bridging the gender gap in the energy industry
The Main Stage saw further exciting activity during the course of Day One, with sessions focused on unpacking the realities of Africa’s energy transition, COVID-19 and climate change, the energy investment landscape and the future of gas in Southern Africa. Some incredibly insightful discussions also took place throughout the Hubs, with a strategic focus on power generation, as well as metering, revenue and energy management and energy storage and alternative energy solutions.
Our Host Media partner ESI Africa’s Studio Hub was the epicentre of activity on all three days, hosting interviews and discussions with key speakers, sponsors and exhibitors about the future of South Africa and Africa’s energy roadmap. All the interviews are available to view on the ESI Africa YouTube Channel.
Day One of the event ended on a high note when visitors and delegates alike attended the Enlit Engage Networking Cocktail Function at the V&A Waterfront’s beautiful Cabo Beach Club, which was a fantastic evening of relaxed engagement and connection — something which had been sorely missed during two years of COVID-19 and which we were incredibly proud to bring back to Enlit Africa.
Save the date: Enlit Africa 2023 takes place at the CTICC, Cape Town, South Africa, 16th – 18th May 2023. Pre-register today
Enlit Africa’s Day Two keynote, sponsored by Siemens, expanded the conversation of Day One and focused on how the opportunities opened by the Just Energy Transition can be replicated across Africa. The panel featured experts in Africa’s energy sector, including Shiferaw Telila, CEO of Ethiopian Electric Utility; Mark Carrato, Coordinator of Power Africa; and Sabine Dall’Omo, CEO of Siemens South Africa.
Funding and finance were the focus of Day Two’s Main Stage sessions, with insightful conversations around alternative funding mechanisms and expanding private participation in Africa’s transmission sector. Grid resilience and planning, maintenance management, and biogas in Africa were some of the topics for discussion in the Hubs, while the Roundtables explored who should be responsible for enabling the productive use of energy and navigating Africa’s changing finance landscape.
Day Two also saw the addition of several exciting features to the programme, including our co-located event, The Smarter Mobility Africa Fleet Summit, kick-off. It explored the challenges and opportunities around transitioning business and government fleets away from internal combustion vehicles, charging infrastructure, financing, carbon emission reduction, cost savings and the integration of electric vehicles with the grid and off-grid technologies.
The Women in Energy Forum featured female leaders making strides in Africa’s science and engineering sector, with female executives from Eskom, the Department of Science and Technology, Hatch Africa, GE Africa and many more expressing their need for a greater voice in Africa’s energy sector to fast-track the inclusive development of the energy landscape on the continent.
The exclusive Networking Dinner at Pigalle’s restaurant in Greenpoint was very well attended and offered further valuable networking opportunities for delegates.
Enlit Africa 2023 takes place at the CTICC, Cape Town, South Africa, 16th – 18th May 2023. Pre-register today
The third and final day of the Enlit Africa conference and exhibition featured Main Stage discussions about future-proofing Africa’s energy infrastructure, as well as power pools and digital energy markets. Hydrogen was the strategic focus topic of the day, with a particular focus on developing the commercialisation of the hydrogen strategy, and what hydrogen means for Africa as a whole.
The event was rounded off with a Cocktail Function and inspiring closing address and musical entertainment by Verity Price, Global Speaker and Winner of the 2021 World Championship of Public Speaking. It wasn’t over yet, as Friday the 10th brought some of the delegates together on very informative and educational site visits across Cape Town, including a tour of the desalination plant on Robben Island, an innovation tour to the University of the Western Cape as well as the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, a look at the Solar PV plant at Lourensford Wine Estate, and a special tour of the Steenbras Hydroelectric Pumped Storage facility above Gordon’s Bay.
Enlit Africa would like to express its deepest thanks to every speaker, sponsor, event partner, exhibitor, delegate and visitor who made this an incredibly successful event.
Save the date: Enlit Africa 2023 takes place at the CTICC, Cape Town, South Africa, 16th – 18th May 2023. Pre-register today
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