Energy Infrastructure Investment Summit 2013

Energy Infrastructure Investment Summit 2013, scheduled on 25-27 September in Accra, Ghana, will provide investors, government bodies and infrastructure developers with exclusive insights on the latest investment and financial opportunities relating to energy infrastructure investments in the West and Sub-Saharan African region. It will shed light on the best strategies for planning and negotiating large-scale infrastructure projects in cooperation with governments, development banks and financial agencies, and infrastructure developers.

The three mega-trends identified in the African continent are the growing resources industries, the expanding demographics and rapidly urbanising population, and demand for infrastructure for the energy and food demand of the population. In the current situation, the substantial deficit in Africa’s energy infrastructure results in increased production and transaction costs, reducing business competitiveness and also negatively impacting on the foreign direct investment flows to the continent. This, in return, impacts on the rate of economic and social development in the continent. Africa is home to almost one third of global mineral reserves, and has a collective GDP amounting to USD 1.6 trillion, thus the anticipated and most significant impact of trends would be in the sectors of natural resources and infrastructural development.

Why West and Sub-Saharan/North Africa?

Despite the challenges of conducting business in Africa, it remains a very lucrative area with vast untapped investment potential in energy and power, transportation and mining sectors, particularly in Ghana, Nigeria, Togo and Benin, as well as the members of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Key challenges include understanding the differing regulatory environment, economic and political stability levels of each country.

Ghana is Africa’s fastest growing economies, with a high level of political a