Training | Capacity Building Academy for Renewable Energy Tenders
ESMAP’s Sustainable Renewables Risk Mitigation Initiative (SRMI), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Power Futures Lab (PFL), and GET.transform have jointly launched the third Capacity Building Academy for Renewable Energy Tenders, a nine-month program designed to strengthen the capacity of energy-sector leaders to develop and implement competitive renewable energy tenders and mobilize private investment.
The third Academy brings together representatives from 14 African and Caribbean countries: Botswana, Egypt, Ghana, Jamaica, Kenya, Lesotho, Libya, Namibia, Nigeria, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. The program combines technical training, peer exchange, and tailored country-level work.
Running from September 2026 to June 2027, the Academy will provide participants with practical tools and knowledge across the full renewable energy tendering process, from energy planning and procurement strategy through to project finance, contract and risk allocation, tender design, and implementation.
Following an initial online session, a first in-person training will further establish the peer-learning community across country delegations. Taking place in Cape Town from October 25 to 30, 2026, the training will provide an intensive introduction to the core technical content, including:
- Energy system planning and grid integration of variable renewable energy;
- Project finance fundamentals, including bankability, equity and debt structuring, and risk allocation;
- Power purchase agreement (PPA) design, including take-or-pay provisions, interconnection, and the role of government;
- Risk mitigation and credit-enhancement instruments, including political risk insurance, partial risk guarantees, and letters of credit; and
- Auction design principles, frameworks, and key design decisions.
Monthly online sessions will then provide deeper technical dives and opportunities for participants to apply the concepts to their own country contexts. The Academy will conclude with a second in-person training week in Cape Town in early June 2027, focused on putting knowledge into practice through immersive exercises and PPA negotiations covering the full tender process.
Building on Two Successful Cohorts
The Capacity Building Academy for Renewable Energy Tenders builds on two impactful earlier rounds. The program was launched in September 2024, drawing on extensive research and practical experience demonstrating the role that well-designed competitive auctions can play in accelerating renewable energy investment.
The first Academy, which concluded in June 2025, brought together 65 public-sector representatives from 12 anglophone African countries: Botswana, Eswatini, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. Participants represented public-private partnership directorates, ministries of energy and finance, regulators, and utilities. The program combined two intensive in-person training weeks with seven online modules, covering competitive tender design and the financial risk mitigation of independent power producer (IPP) projects.
A key outcome was the development of country action plans addressing challenges in upcoming renewable energy tenders, with a focus on improving bankability, transparency, and effectiveness. The Academy also helped identify approximately 100 technical assistance needs, providing development partners with a basis for better prioritizing and coordinating follow-up support.
The second Academy, held from October 2025 to June 2026, expanded the initiative to 17 francophone countries, with 72 participants and additional backing from the African Development Bank’s Desert to Power program. Implemented by the Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy (MASEN), the second cohort built on the methodology, materials, and lessons learned from the first Academy.
Together, the two cohorts have established a growing community of practitioners working to strengthen renewable energy procurement and create more effective pathways for private investment.
