Time to shift the balance from challenge to fortune in Africa and Asia

Colin Ley gives an overview of the sector in Africa and Asia.

Any assessment of bioenergy prospects across Africa and Asia is almost certainly destined to be at least 40% wrong. By the same token, the vast and diverse nature of both continents means that the same assessment will likely be 40% correct, with the 20% in the middle best described as entering ‘toss-up’ territory.

The challenge for developers and investors in such a scenario is to make sure their energy ambition, focus and spending is directed towards the 40% that suits them best. At least it does at first glance.

The range of development and investment choice in the two continents is enormous. Project options in Asia, for example, can look very different in China, Japan, and India, from those that may become available over the next 25 to 30 years in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

Similarly in Africa, the prospect of building a new bioenergy plant in South Africa and Seychelles is likely to hold greater initial appeal than doing the same in South Sudan or Somalia, a judgment based on the United Nations' ranking of countries according to its...