The first ministerial meeting of the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI) kicked off Tuesday in Cairo, in the attendance of energy ministers from Kenya, Chad, Guinea, Namibia, and Egypt.
The first phase of building an electricity line linking power grids in Egypt and Sudan is set to be completed within the next two months, said Egypt’s Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker.
AREI aims to add up to 10 GW in 2020 to reach 300 GW in 2030, fulfilling the whole needs of the African continent, said the minister. It seeks to exchange expertise so that African countries would sidestep challenges faced by other states in the energy sector.
Shaker added that Kenya has wide experience in benefiting from the earth temperature, and Egypt in the field of solar energy, especially that the private sector rushes to invest in this field.
The first meeting of AREI addressed the Egyptian experience in generating electricity through new and renewable energies during the past four years, stated Shaker, knowing that he showcased the private sector experience in establishing the greatest solar energy station in the world in Benban with a capacity of 1465 MW.
Egypt will grant African countries 25 scholarships to get training in Egypt, he said, adding that Egypt provided more than 7,500 training opportunities for African engineers and technicians in the electricity and energy sector.
Egypt will chair the African Union (AU) next month for one-year.
