Uche Cecil Izuora
Africa’s energy sector opportunities will be the major focus of conversion by theAfrican Energy Chamber (AEC) during the “Unlocking African Energy Opportunities” webinar, hosted by TradeIL South Africa – the trade promotion arm of Israel’s Foreign Trade Administration on June 8.
The Chamber has prepared a spotlight of Africa’s energy sector as a high-growth investment destination targeting Israeli stakeholders.
The AEC Executive Chairman NJ Ayuk will represent the Chamber, joining industry leaders to examine market entry strategies, investment trends and the technologies shaping Africa’s evolving energy landscape.
Africa’s upstream oil and gas sector is entering a new investment cycle, with capital expenditure forecast to reach approximately $41 billion in 2026 the highest level in more than a decade.
Production is expected to remain stable at around 11.4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, with new developments projected to increase output to 13.6 million barrels per day by 2030.
Growth is being driven by established producers such as Nigeria, Angola and Republic of Congo, alongside frontier exploration successes in Namibia and Côte d’Ivoire that continue to expand the continent’s resource base.
At the same time, Africa’s structural power deficit remains one of the most significant drivers of opportunity across the energy value chain. Around 600 million people on the continent still lack access to electricity, with sub-Saharan Africa accounting for the majority of the global energy access gap.
This reality underpins growing demand for scalable solutions in grid stability, renewable energy and gas-to-power – areas where Israeli companies bring globally recognized expertise.
Renewable energy deployment is accelerating, with Africa recording a 15.9 per cent increase in installed capacity in 2025 to reach 82 GW. Key markets including Ethiopia, South Africa and Egypt are leading this growth.
However, Africa still accounted for just 1.6 per cent of global capacity additions, highlighting a substantial gap between potential and execution.
This gap presents clear commercial opportunities in grid management, energy storage and distributed generation, where both capital and technical capabilities remain limited.
Public and multilateral financing is increasingly aligned with closing this gap. Initiatives such as Mission 300 led by the World Bank and the African Development Bank aim to connect 300 million people to electricity by 2030, backed by more than $90 billion in funding.
Meanwhile, offshore gas discoveries in Mozambique, Senegal and Mauritania are supporting a growing pipeline of gas-to-power projects, creating demand for technology providers, equipment suppliers and financing partners.
For Israeli companies, the webinar will focus on practical pathways to market entry. Ayuk will outline opportunities across licensing rounds, local content frameworks and partnership models with national oil companies and independent power producers. The session will also introduce African Energy Week 2026 the continent’s most influential energy event and highlight opportunities for participation, investment and strategic partnerships.
The AEC continues to emphasize early-mover advantage, positioning companies that establish a presence today to secure long-term value as Africa’s energy sector scales.
“Israel has built some of the most advanced grid, water and energy technologies in the world, and Africa is the market where that expertise can have the greatest impact,” said Ayuk. “The companies that invest in relationships and local partnerships today will be the ones leading projects tomorrow.”
The session forms part of a broader push to strengthen energy cooperation between Israel and African markets, aligning Israeli innovation with Africa’s upstream, generation and transmission needs. For companies evaluating entry into the continent, the webinar offers direct insight into the policy frameworks, project pipelines and partnership structures shaping Africa’s next phase of energy development.