British Ambassador John Casson hosted Thursday a reception at the British Embassy for Lekela Power, a pan-African renewable energy platform which is a joint venture between Actis, the British pan-emerging market investor and Mainstream Renewable Power (Mainstream), the global wind and solar developer. Actis is looking to boost its investment into Egypt and contribute to the country's long-term renewable energy strategy. Speaking at the event, Casson said: "The UK is the largest foreign investor in Egypt and at the Sharm el-Sheikh Economic Conference in March it was a British company, BP, Which signed the biggest investment deal in Egypt's history worth $12 billion. But the UK's commitment to Egypt was never just about three days in Sharm el-Sheikh; it is and will remain about having a permanent presence at the heart of Egypt's economy," "That's why I am proud to support Actis and Mainstream with their new venture, Lekela Power, as they look to boost their investments in the renewable energy sector. President el-Sisi himself has announced that boosting Egypt's energy supply is one of his government's top priorities and has said that he wants 20% of energy production to come from renewable sources by 2020. Credible foreign investors like Actis are helping Egyptians build a more secure, prosperous, and democratic future for their country." Casson added. Actis is a trusted partner that has been operating in Egypt for over ten years. It has an unrivalled track record, having invested over $500m in a diverse range of businesses in the country including Commercial International Bank (CIB), El-Rashidi El-Mizan, Edita Food Industries, the 685MW Sidi Krir power plant and Integrated Diagnostics Holdings (IDH). Actis launched Lekela Power in February, it is Actis's 8th such business, and its 3rd partnership with Mainstream Renewable Power. Worth $1.9bn in total, Lekela Power's projects will generate up to 1,000 MW of renewable energy in countries across Africa over the next five years. Lekela is developing wind and solar projects in Egypt that will deliver 100 MW of power and is looking at further renewable opportunities to expand its presence in the Egyptian market. It has submitted the lowest overall tariff in its Alternative Proposal for the Gabal el Zeit project. From his part, Lekela CEO, Chris Antonopoulos said: "It's really exciting to be able to enhance Egypt's energy future and strengthen our pan-African footprint. Drawing on Lekela's partners' deep understanding of the renewable energy sector and the Egyptian market, we are looking forward to unlocking the country's formidable renewable resources and meeting some of the urgent demand."
