Sydney Nii Ayitey Tetteh, Executive Vice President for Energy and Infrastructure at Stanbic Bank Ghana, announced that the bank’s parent company, Standard Bank Group, has committed $3 million in concessionary loans to advance clean energy initiatives across Africa to support various small, but impactful projects. This announcement was made at the inaugural African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA) Forum held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
Addressing financial solutions for liquified petroleum gas (LPG) projects in Africa, Tetteh emphasized LPG’s critical role in the continent’s energy transition. He stated, “Africa has the enabling environment for LPG financing, and growth in energy diversification will lead to stronger economic prospects. At Stanbic Bank, we committed early on to supporting the gas and LPG sector because we believe gas is essential for Africa’s energy transition and for achieving zero carbon emissions.”
As a result of this, Standard Bank has committed to support gas and clean energy projects across Africa. In Ghana, the bank has invested $150 million in a gas conditioning plant, which will be completed in the next 12 months,” he added.
Sydney Nii Ayitey Tetteh further touched on the considerations the bank makes before making financing decisions in the industry. He said, “In our financing strategy, environmental sustainability is foremost. Apart from that, we consider the economic impact, whether or not the project is going to lift the African out of poverty and the impact on Africa’s energy security – whether or not it is going to shore up the energy we need to drive industrialization on the continent. We also consider the impact on cost in terms of affordability and the social implications of the project.”
Tetteh also discussed other essential criteria Stanbic Bank evaluates before funding a project. These include favourability of government regulation and policy, strategic alignment and certainty, a strong business case with sufficient capacity, financially secure off-takers with reliable payment capacity, optimal physical location and environmental sustainability and community acceptance.
The inaugural African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA), held under the theme “Revolutionizing LPG Adoption and Long-Term Sustainability as a Cleaner Cooking Alternative across Africa,” was dedicated to LPG. The event brought together key stakeholders in Africa’s LPG value chain – regulators, project developers and financiers – to align on critical areas of collaboration and implementation to significantly increase LPG consumption on the continent.
The forum covered key factors and regulatory frameworks for creating an enabling environment for LPG markets in Africa, best practices for providing robust and world-class LPG supply chains, ensuring the accessibility and “affordability” of LPG (including last-mile distribution), key considerations for financing bankable investments in LPG and the role of LPG as a critical transition fuel in Africa’s energy transition.
The Forum also included training sessions covering LPG storage and distribution operations, human capital development and visits to LPG terminals and depots in Abidjan.