LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Joule Africa, the British-American alternative energy developer partnering with the Government of Sierra Leone to build the second phase of the Bumbuna Hydroelectric power station, announced today the appointment of three new members to its Advisory Board: Ken Costa, General Lord Richard Dannatt and Lord David Triesman. The development of Bumbuna Phase II by Joule Africa and the Government of Sierra Leone will more than quadruple the West African country's power generation capacity by 2017.
Ken Costa was most recently Chairman of Lazard International and previously Vice-Chairman of UBS Investment Bank. He has advised numerous landmark transactions including the sale of Harrods to Qatar Holdings. Mr Costa has more than 30 years of senior investment banking experience, including large infrastructure and investment projects in Sub-Saharan Africa.
General Lord Richard Dannatt is the former Chief of the General Staff and the incumbent Constable of the Tower of London. He has also served as the Commander-in-Chief, Land Forces; and the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps. In addition to his considerable experience in geopolitical and logistical matters, he has direct experience of Sierra Leone, both professionally and via his status as a patron of the charity, Street Child of Sierra Leone.
Lord David Triesman is the former UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with responsibility for Africa under Tony Blair. Among his other responsibilities, he is now Chairman of the Board of Advisors of the boutique merchant bank, Templewood, whose investors and clients have a strategic interest in Africa. Lord Triesman maintains close relationships with a number of heads of state in Africa and brings an understanding of the political issues involved in progressing projects of this nature.
Mark Green, Managing Partner, Joule Africa comments: “We are delighted to have attracted all three of these men to join our Advisory Board. All of them bring world-class experience in complimentary areas that will help us move forward on an even stronger footing in Sierra Leone and elsewhere in the region. We have been informally working with each of them individually for varying periods of time and are delighted to formalize the relationships.”
About Joule Africa
Joule Africa is a member of the Joule Investments Group, a California-based developer, owner, and operator of hydroelectric power projects in emerging markets with existing projects in Latin America.
Joule Africa has been established to develop hydroelectric projects in Sub-Saharan Africa with an initial focus on West and Central Africa. The development of phase two of the Bumbuna Hydroelectric project with the Government of Sierra Leone will be the first major project in the region.
About Sierra Leone
Currently Sierra Leone has one of the lowest levels of electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa – less than 100 MW. At the completion of Bumbuna Phase II, initial estimates put the incremental increase in power capacity at 339 MW, bringing the total Bumbuna power capacity to 389 MW. The increase will quadruple the amount of power available in the country.