Laurent Clément (EDF): “Africa is home to energy innovation ecosystems”

Jean Marie Takouleu: The winners of the 5^th EDF Pulse Africa prize are known. They are the start-up Diwa Innovation, which won the Coup de Coeur prize. There’s also data354 and Atarec. Knights Energy Kenya won the boost prize. Can you tell us what the aim of this initiative is for a major group like EDF, and then for innovation in Africa?

Laurent Clément: The EDF Pulse Africa prize is linked to EDF’s raison d’être, which is to build a carbon dioxide (CO₂) neutral energy future. Innovation is at the heart of this strategy. To achieve this, we have a large R&D (research and development) team with a sizeable annual budget (€473 million in 2022, editor’s note).

However, we believe that innovation doesn’t just come from within the company – it emerges from everywhere. Six years ago, we launched the EDF Pulse awards in France, the UK and Italy. The aim was to seek out innovative start-ups developing solutions around the decarbonisation of electricity and energy services. Five years ago, we decided to extend this initiative to the African continent, still with a view to finding innovative small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and going out into the field to find entrepreneurs who are developing solutions locally, with the aim of supporting them and drawing inspiration from their solutions by working with them.

Have you identified as much talent in the energy sector in Africa?

Yes, we’ve found a lot in 5 years. For this 5^th edition, for example, we had six finalists with many interesting projects for the future.

Do you think there should be more initiatives like this in Africa?

Innovation in Africa doesn’t need big groups to develop. Innovation is very dynamic here. We can see this in the 5^th EDF Pulse Africa, which attracted the interest of 427 start-ups. There is already an ecosystem around innovation in the different geographical areas in which we work. EDF’s aim is to make its contribution to this ecosystem by bringing the expertise of a major group in the technical development of projects and in business financing.

This initiative also enables EDF to stay connected to the proven solutions of tomorrow that are now emerging.

Following this award in Paris, what’s next for the four start-ups that have been selected?

What’s special this year is that we’re aiming to deploy at least one pilot project with the prizewinners to develop and implement their projects, providing multi-dimensional support. The Diwa startup from Cameroon, which won the 1st EDF prize, will be supported in its development so that we can integrate its solution, which is based on the development of tools for preserving foodstuffs using solar energy and thermal assets, into our offerings in Cameroon, for example.

In addition to this, our partner HEC, which awarded it a “Coup de Coeur” prize, will be integrating it into its “Start Africa” program. We also have two other prize-winners with whom we will be developing a concrete project in Africa, based on their technical solutions, business model, etc.

Over the years, have there been any promising start-ups in which EDF has invested after the competition?

We have continued to work with a number of start-ups. In particular, we have invested in Standard Microgrid Zambia (SMZ), a finalist in 2018 specialising in mini-grids tailored to the needs of the population.

Overall, the award-winning start-ups are developing solutions that we are continuing to monitor with a view to identifying opportunities for joint development.

A few days ago, EDF completed its acquisition of the start-up upOwa in Cameroon. This is not the first energy start-up in which EDF has invested in Africa. There’s also Zola Electric, which operates in sub-Saharan Africa. How do you explain this strategy?

Our aim is to support the various countries in which we work, with a view to accelerating access to electricity. It is estimated that 600 million African citizens do not have access to this basic service. Solving this problem requires the development of major infrastructure projects, particularly hydroelectric. These are centralised projects that enable electricity to be produced and transported to populations and economic activities.

However, if there are populations that are not connected to the electricity network, the time taken to extend it to these people can be enormous. Today, however, there are solutions for equipping communities that are not connected to the national grid, with simple, low-cost solutions that provide access to electricity. These solutions proposed by start-ups have been developed simultaneously in several African countries.

Through these start-ups, EDF is developing solar kits that are installed on the roofs of houses and that can be used to power sockets for recharging mobile phones, a few lights for the home, a fan, a television, and so on.  Thanks to these decentralised solutions, we have already been able to give 2.5 million people access to electricity. It’s a start, and we need to go faster.

Will the upOwa start-up extend its services to other countries on the continent, with the arrival of EDF?

It’s too early to talk about EDF’s strategy in our partnership with upOwa. What is certain is that our objective is to develop its coverage with off-grid solutions.

In addition to these start-ups, EDF is investing in major energy infrastructures, notably hydroelectricity in Cameroon and biomass in Ivory Coast. Will these renewable energies be enough to meet the growing demand for electricity in Africa in the long term? Do we also need to further diversify the electricity mix by adding thermal power stations, such as gas-fired?

We are developing centralised infrastructures with great potential, particularly hydro in Cameroon with the Nachtigal dam (420 MW) and the forthcoming Kikot scheme (500 MW). There’s also Malawi, with the Mpatamanga project (350 MW), and the Mphanda Nkuwa project (1,500 MW) in Mozambique. We have ambitions in this particular sector because it provides low-carbon, renewable electricity, with very high potential in Africa. This is what we call baseload energy, because with a dam, you can have continuous and peak production. So it’s a flexible energy.

It’s the same for biomass, which enables us to meet the challenge of the circular economy. But these are infrastructures that can take some time to set up. For a dam, for example, it takes around ten years on average. Above these infrastructures, we will have other renewable energies, notably wind and photovoltaic solar power, which are by definition intermittent. To integrate these energies into the grid, we will also need to develop storage solutions using batteries and other pumped storage facilities.

With a sufficiently well-constructed electricity mix, we can find ourselves in a situation where the majority of production is renewable. Nevertheless, the use of thermal energies, in particular gas-fired power stations, may be entirely possible in order to cope with the transition over time or to reduce the impact of the intermittency associated with the production of renewable energies.

This solution is controversial. And, given the volatility of certain fossil fuel prices, could EDF invest in the construction of a combined cycle gas power plant in an African country over the next few years?

The question is not the price of gas. EDF wants to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. So all the projects we develop are viewed through the prism of this objective. Alternatively, EDF can develop a thermal project in which we are able to capture and store CO₂.

The EDF Group has also entered the very dynamic renewable energy sector in South Africa, with several concessions obtained and partnerships signed with the private sector. It’s a very large but competitive market. How do you intend to make the most of it?

The EDF Group has been involved in renewable energies for several years. Today, we are one of the main independent power producers (IPPs) on the South African market, with large capacities under construction in partnership with the public and private sectors. We have been able to finance and start building all the projects for which we have been selected.

Yes, South Africa is a dynamic market in which we are doing very well. As proof, of the first call for tenders launched by the South African government for the storage of electricity by batteries for 5 sites, three were won by EDF. We were able to show that we are well placed to support South Africa in its energy transition.

Interview by Jean Marie Takouleu