TotalEnergies is set to acquire a 100% stake in SN Power, a subsidiary of Norwegian renewable energy producer Scatec, which operates hydropower projects across Africa.
The transaction, subject to certain previous conditions, will allow TotalEnergies to acquire a 28.3% stake in the 250MW Bujagali hydropower plant in Uganda, which covers more than 25% of the country’s peak electricity demand.
TotalEnergies will also gain minority stakes in two hydropower projects under development in Rwanda and Malawi with capacities of 260MW and 360MW, respectively.
The agreement is managed through a joint venture between private equity company Norfund and British International Investment, the development finance institution of the British Government.
Scatec CEO Terje Pilskog stated: “We believe TotalEnergies will be a strong asset owner going forward, with the ability to further develop the projects and contribute to the energy transition in Africa.”
TotalEnergies CEO and chairman Patrick Pouyanné also emphasised the company’s goal to contribute to Africa’s energy transition, commenting: “In particular, we are delighted to become a player in hydropower in Uganda, a country where we are also developing a major oil project. This is another example of TotalEnergies’ ability to implement its multi-energy strategy in oil-producing countries to support them in their energy transition.”
Power Technology’s parent company, GlobalData, reports that Uganda is one of several African countries that obtains at least 90% of its overall electricity from hydropower.
According to GlobalData, hydropower will remain the dominant renewable technology in Africa until at least 2034, offering fruitful ground for TotalEnergies to expand its investments and portfolio across the continent.
TotalEnergies has interests in a range of hydropower projects worldwide with a gross global capacity of 3.7GW.
Also announced today (30 July) was the company’s exit from offshore blocks 11B/12B and 5/6/7 in South Africa.
At the close of 2023, TotalEnergies’ gross renewable electricity generation installed capacity was 22GW. The company aims to reach 35GW in 2025 and more than 100 terawatt-hours of net electricity production by 2030.
