Afreximbank to promote LNG distribution in West Africa

Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), a subsidiary of African bank Afreximbank, has invested in Ecow-Gas, an LNG distribution infrastructure platform in the West Africa region.

The industrial sector in Africa has problems with energy shortages and high production costs. There are also inefficient operations and reduced global competitiveness, amongst others. This is because of the limited power supply from the grid.

Therefore, off-grid solutions are required to address these challenges and put Africa on the path to energy sustainability.

FEDA’s investment in Ecow-Gas is to support the creation of the infrastructure for access to cleaner fuels across the region. In addition, this is to promote efforts to minimize CO2 emissions by replacing environment-polluting fuels currently in use.

Benedict Oramah, president of the board of directors of Afreximbank, said: “Through this investment, FEDA is seeking to unlock access to affordable and cleaner energy for industrialization purposes.”

Emmanuel Assiak, acting CEO, FEDA, added: “We believe that EcowGas will help to significantly remove the energy supply and cost bottlenecks that negatively impact the competitiveness of the region as a manufacturing destination.”

Kwaku Boakye-Adjei, CEO of Ecow-Gas, commented: “We are excited to commence this project as we see LNG as not only a fuel for large scale independent power producers in the region but for mid to small scale industries as well to transition from heavy fuel oil, diesel and other distillates and ultimately, to renewables. LNG-powered microgeneration can help to alleviate issues such as intermittency which act as a barrier to wide scale adoption of renewables in West Africa.”