Energy trader Etana Energy reaches Financial Close on first solar project unlocked with financing from Norfund and Standard Bank

The deal will unlock 75MWac new renewable electricity capacity for large power users. 

Source: Render image provided by Mulilo 

Cape Town, South Africa – As demand for low-carbon electricity increases, Etana Energy continues to blaze a trail in South Africa’s renewable electricity sector. The pioneering South African energy trader supplying renewable energy for large power users, secured a R1 billion payment guarantee facility with Standard Bank, and a preference share investment of up to R372M from Norfund, the Norwegian Investment Fund for developing countries, and Standard Bank. This follows the signing of a $100 million (R1.8 billion) guarantee facility agreement with GuarantCo and British International Investment (BII) late last year, a deal extensively covered in the media.  

This investment and guarantee financing enables the company’s energy aggregator business model—and is paving the way for large-scale, multibillion-rand renewable electricity projects that are now advancing to construction. 

On 17 March 2025, the 75MW Du Plessis Dam Solar PV2 project, codeveloped by Mulilo and H1 Holdings, two of the leading players in South Africa’s renewable energy sector, reached financial close with Etana as the offtaker. This marks a major milestone for the rapidly growing energy trader. The solar project is located just outside De Aar in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, with construction kicking off at the end of April 2025. This deal is one of the first utility-scale projects closed in South Africa with a trader as the offtaker. 

This is Etana’s first solar project as offtaker and the first to utilise the company’s guarantee facilities; with Etana having already contracted with a 5MW hydro facility (Boston Hydro), which is currently under construction with Growthpoint as the sole offtaker. 

“Securing financial close on this project demonstrates the market’s confidence in Etana's trading model — vetted and approved by blue-chip customers, independent power producers (IPPs), commercial lenders, and guarantors. Combined with strong financial backing, this has given us the platform to scale rapidly, bringing up to 700MW of wind and solar power into the system at a critical time for South Africa.” says Jay Govender, Chief Commercial and Legal Officer, Etana Energy. 

“We are incredibly proud to be associated with the financing of both Etana as trader and Du Plessis Dam as generator and this encapsulates how we partner with our clients along the value chain” – Sherrill Byrne, Executive Investment Banking at Standard Bank. 

Etana has already contracted with over 20 customers for its initial 280MW (comprising these hydro, solar and two other wind projects) underscoring the strong demand for its offering. With the first projects now progressing to construction, the company is shifting focus onto contracting customers for its next phase of secured grid-connectable wind and solar projects. 

Evan Rice, CEO of Etana Energy said: “Our ambition is to make a meaningful contribution to South Africa’s energy transition and energy security, unlocking investment in new renewable energy generation capacity by providing businesses with affordable, low-carbon power through the grid. With financial backing from leading global and local institutions and a secured portfolio of grid-connectable wind and solar projects with leading IPP partners, we are well-positioned to help accelerate the next wave of renewable electricity growth and solidify our role as a key player in South Africa’s evolving electricity sector. This milestone would not have been possible without the collaboration and trust of our partners—our sincere thanks to the investors, guarantors, IPPs, lenders and customers who have walked this road with us.” 

Vincenzia Leitich, Executive Client Coverage at Standard Bank said “Standard Bank, through partnership and innovation, has established itself as a leader in structuring transactions with a trader offtake. This transaction exemplifies that leadership, providing funding at the project level while also supporting Etana with the necessary trader liquidity assistance.”   

Chanine Williams, Senior Investment Manager at Norfund: "Norfund is excited to be a long-term partner in Etana Energy’s journey, working alongside H1 Holdings and Chariot to bring more renewable energy onto the South African grid. This investment aligns with our mission to support innovative, market-driven solutions that unlock clean energy at scale. We are proud to back a company that is driving new market innovation and enabling large power users to transition to scale and accelerate South Africa’s energy transition."    

ENDS 

Key contacts 

Etana Energy 
Nimal Chabilall 
Head of Operations 
Email: info@etana.energy

Issued by Treeshake on behalf of Etana Energy 
Anneke Burns 
Publicist 
Tel: +27 71 423 0079 
Email: anneke@abpr.co.za 

About Etana Energy 
Etana Energy is a majority black-owned, licensed electricity trader that supplies electricity generated by renewable energy projects to businesses in South Africa, using the national electricity grid. Etana’s customers benefit from certified low-carbon electricity at tariffs competitive with Eskom or municipal supply, forward price certainty, flexible contracting terms and qualifying B-BEEE expenditure. Etana’s founding shareholders are H1 Holdings, a black-owned investment company and Chariot Limited, a British group focused on developing transitional energy projects in Africa, listed on the London Stock Exchange. Etana has offices in Cape Town, Gqeberha and Johannesburg. For more information, visit  https://etana.energy/  

About Standard Bank Group 
Standard Bank Group is the largest African bank by assets, operating in 20 African countries, four global financial centres and two offshore hubs. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, we are listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, with share code SBK, and the Namibian Stock Exchange, share code SNB. 

Standard Bank has a 162-year history in South Africa and started building a franchise outside southern Africa in the early 1990s. Our strategic position, which enables us to connect Africa to other select emerging markets as well as pools of capital in developed markets, and our balanced portfolio of businesses, provide significant opportunities for growth. 

As at 30 June 2024, Standard Bank Group had 19.5 million clients, employed nearly 51 000 people (including Liberty) and had almost 1 200 points of representation and 5 500 ATMs on the African continent. 

The group’s largest shareholder is the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the world’s largest bank, with a 19.4% shareholding. In addition, Standard Bank Group and ICBC share a strategic partnership that facilitates trade and deal flow between Africa, China and select emerging markets. 

For further information, go to http://www.standardbank.com 

About Norfund 
Norfund is the Norwegian Investment Fund for developing countries with a mission to create jobs and improve lives by investing in businesses that drive sustainable development. Owned and funded by the Norwegian Government, Norfund is the Government’s most important tool for strengthening the private sector in developing countries and reducing poverty. 

Norfund’s committed portfolio amounts to USD 3.6 billion, with investments across Sub-Saharan Africa, South/Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Additionally, Norfund manages the Norwegian Climate Investment Fund, which focuses on reducing or avoiding greenhouse gas emissions by investing in renewable energy in developing countries with large emissions from coal and other fossil fuel production. For more details, please visit: www.norfund.no