Energy leaders, sovereign wealth funds and mining executives will gather at the Africa Energy Forum to discuss transmission, renewable energy and critical minerals infrastructure.
Image: Supplied.
Africa’s push toward industrial scale energy infrastructure will take centre stage next month as the Africa Energy Forum 2026 returns to Cape Town from 16 to 19 June.
The annual gathering is expected to bring together major energy companies, investors, development finance institutions, sovereign wealth funds and governments focused on accelerating the continent’s energy transition and industrial growth.
This year’s forum comes at a time when African economies are increasingly shifting their focus from basic energy access toward large scale infrastructure capable of supporting manufacturing, mining, trade corridors and heavy industry.
Projects under discussion include transmission infrastructure, renewable energy developments, mining logistics corridors and baseload power generation.
Adam Cortese, whose company is among the forum sponsors, said the event reflects a growing commitment to long term industrial investment across Africa.
“I am looking forward to joining the conversation in Cape Town this June,” Cortese said.
“What excites me about this year’s summit is the calibre of capital and commitment in the room, companies that are financing baseload capacity for heavy industry, building mining corridors that will define trade routes for decades, and deploying renewable projects that will anchor Africa’s manufacturing future.”
He added that the continent requires structural and long term investment thinking to unlock its full industrial potential.
“That is the kind of long term, structural thinking that Sun Africa has always believed this continent deserves, and it is exactly the conversation we need to be having,” Cortese said.
Companies including ACWA Power, Infinity Power and AMEA Power are among those developing gigawatt scale renewable energy projects across the continent.
Meanwhile, firms such as Globeleq and TotalEnergies are financing and operating large infrastructure projects designed to support industrial activity.
Development finance institutions including British International Investment and International Finance Corporation are also expected to participate in discussions around blended finance structures aimed at unlocking additional private and sovereign investment into African infrastructure.
Simon Gosling, Managing Director of EnergyNet said the forum’s agenda this year is heavily focused on the physical infrastructure required for industrialisation.
“As Africa moves from aspiration to execution, this year’s agenda focuses on the hardware of industrialisation, the steel, concrete and transmission lines that will define Africa’s industrial future,” Gosling said.
Key discussions will examine how to structure bankable projects, expand grid infrastructure, improve cross border transmission systems and support the processing of Africa’s vast critical mineral reserves.
A dedicated two day stream will focus on critical minerals and the infrastructure required to move beyond raw extraction toward downstream processing and manufacturing.
Sessions are expected to cover projects such as the Lobito Corridor, Liberty Corridor and Simandou infrastructure developments as examples of large scale project finance and trade infrastructure.
Energy trading, data centre supply chains, artificial intelligence driven revenue protection and compliance with carbon border adjustment mechanisms will also form part of the discussions.
South Africa’s own energy transition and infrastructure reforms are expected to feature prominently throughout the forum.
The country’s efforts around private transmission investment, renewable energy procurement, mining linked energy projects and electricity trading are increasingly being viewed as a live case study for the rest of the continent.
Senior government and industry leaders scheduled to participate include Dr. Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, Minister of Electricity and Energy, Samantha Graham-Marè, Deputy Minister of Electricity and Energy, Dan Marokane, GCE, Eskom, Jeremiah Kpan Koung, Vice President, Liberia, Lerato Mataboge, African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy, Precious Edward, Head, IPP Office, Obaïd Amrane, CEO, Ithmar Capital, Mike Teke, Group CEO, Seriti Resources; and Jonathan Hoffman, CEO, Globeleq.
The forum will also include closed door roundtables involving utilities, regulators, development finance institutions, sovereign wealth funds and private sector executives focused on accelerating capital deployment into African infrastructure projects.
On the final day, the Youth Energy Summit will run alongside the main programme under the theme “Empowering Today’s Entrepreneurs, Building Tomorrow’s Industrialists”.
The initiative is expected to bring together approximately 600 young people for workshops, entrepreneurship discussions and skills development sessions focused on opportunities within Africa’s evolving energy sector.
Follow Business Report on Facebook, X and on LinkedIn for the latest Business and tech news.