Dear SANEA Supporter

SANEA announced a few weeks ago that we would be commencing a new series of training and awareness programmes with the overall aim of accelerating and supporting a just energy transition in South Africa, and that the first of these training and awareness programmes focusses on the finance sector. 

The programme will be covered over series of customised 3 half day and one full day sessions (either virtual or face to face), as well as an e-learning on demand module next year, on the energy transition and financing energy projects.  These modules will be held in November 2021 and then in April and August of 2022 and February of 2023.

One of the fundamental building blocks of the energy transition is to be able to access finance that has attributes commensurate with the challenges that developing countries are faced with.

The complexity of the finance sector and in particular the financing of clean energy projects has grown substantially over the last decade.  The requirements for borrowers have increased in breadth and intricacy, as have reporting requirements and the number of funding institutions and instruments. In addition, the market is fundamentally shifting, and new business models and market rules are emerging as decentralised energy grows and markets liberalise. 

Understanding this ecosystem and being able to understand the best options for funding specific projects, revenue models with different market rules and structures, as well as the various financial requirements, will assist policy makers, project developers, NGO’s etc.   The programme is structured to provide for a two-way dialogue. Participants will be drawn from and network with others from the energy and related sectors, and financing thereof.

The benefits of attending the programme will lead to an improved understanding of the processes and the financial sector players.  In addition, understanding of how to avoid of being unable to recover the costs of business case development as well as the avoidance of time delays by being prepared for the licencing processes, monitoring and reporting requirements.  The way the programme will be run will also result in increased networking and knowledge sharing.  A paper synthesising the key points and learning that come out of the programme will be published by SANEA after the last module.

As an important stakeholder in the energy and finance discussion, we invite you to sponsor people in your organisation and within your value chain or sphere of influence to attend this critical programme for each of the four modules.  

The cost of sponsorship is R1500 per delegate and all the delegates will be made a part of an impact community to continue the debate and learning.  We would particularly encourage that SMME’s with which you interact are considered, given their important role in economic development in our country.

The first module will be held from the 22nd to the 25th of November 2021 and so we ask that any people or organisations that you may sponsor are nominated before the 10th of November 2021 to allow us to contact them and arrange all the logistics. Alternatively, we can accommodate them at the future sessions.