- As global financial institutions continue to reduce or eliminate fossil fuel lending, emerging producers like Namibia are seeking to drive local and regional financial participation in capital-intensive projects and trade infrastructure.
- The world will need 10,000 MW of generation capacity by 2030, and we need to be innovative in how we structure our capital for deployment.
Under the theme, “Financing Energy&Power Projects: Trends, Outlook&Forecast,” a strategic panel examined how Namibia can finance large-scale energy projects and structure deals that benefit local economies during the 2023 Namibia International Energy Conference on Thursday. As global financial institutions continue to reduce or eliminate fossil fuel lending, emerging producers like Namibia are seeking to drive local and regional financial participation in capital-intensive projects and trade infrastructure.
“It is critical that we find a new pool of liquidity. Most of the European banks are moving away from hydrocarbon financing, which is clearly affecting projects across Africa,” said Paul Eardley-Taylor, Southern African Regional Head of Oil&Gas for Standard Bank. In addition to leveraging foreign investment as an end within itself, panellists discussed how the sector could leverage foreign support to create local capacity through regional debt and credit-support instruments. Claire Hobbs, Chief Treasurer for the Bank of Windhoek, urged local firms to actively finance Namibia’s energy and infrastructure sectors.
Hobbs said, “In terms of smaller projects, we are prepared and ready. But we must work together to secure regional partners and back local content efforts. Bank Windhoek is 100% Namibian-owned, and we are focused on supporting local capacity building.”
Bruce Hansen, Managing Director at Simonis Storm Securities Namibia, clarified why efforts are critical to the long-term success of the Namibian and African energy industry. He said, “There is a cocktail of issues influencing global hydrocarbon development, from commodity pricing to portfolio alignment efforts in response to the Paris Agreement. The world will need 10,000 MW of generation capacity by 2030, and we need to be innovative in how we structure our capital for deployment.”