Renewables for Industry and Agriculture in Mozambique
Veerle Smet is a political scientist working in international partnerships since 2001. She has worked for the European Union both in Headquarters and in Delegations in Africa and Latin America. Since 2019, she is working in Mozambique as Team Leader in Infrastructure, Private Sector Development and Investment contributing as such to the promotion of trade and investment as well as the development of infrastructure projects, both with public and private sector.
Thierry is now Head of cooperation at the German Embassy in Maputo, Mozambique. Thierry has worked as Senior policy officer at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in Germany, in charge for the cooperation with Indonesia as well as for the sector strategy development in the fields of reproductive health and population dynamics; desk officer at the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in Germany; logistician with Doctor Without Borders (MSF) in the Democratic Republic of Congo; project assistant/intern with Deutsche Welthungerhilfe (German Agro Action) in Ethiopia.
For the past 10 years, he has served as PCA at MCNet. He has been involved in several Public Service Reform Projects in the area of Information Systems, with emphasis on the Single Electronic Window for Customs, e-Taxation, Digital Electoral Census, System for Issuing Tickets and Driving Licenses. development of associativism both as a member of the Board of Directors and as President, namely:
- President of the Association of Industrialists of Mozambique-AIMO;
- Member of the Board of Directors of ANEP, National Authority for Professional Education,
- President of the Mozambique Brazil Chamber of Commerce;
- Member of the Board of Directors of the Mozambique Portugal Chamber of Commerce;
- Participation in several national and international debate platforms, with emphasis on the Africa CEO program.
- Member of the Editorial Board of the magazine Economia & Mercado, a modern Mozambican economic magazine with monthly circulation
Since last year, he has been involved in corporate campaigns to support MISAU, in the context of combating and preventing Covid-19. He has a degree in Electrotechnical Engineering from UEM and has more than 20 years of experience in project development.
Hernani Mussanhane is a Mozambican businessman graduated in Financial Management and who has extensive experience in business management in different companies and sectors ranging from agriculture, infrastructure, tourism, insurance and real estate.
He is currently President of FENAGRI (National Federation of Agrarian Associations), an institution that plays the role of focal point of the Mozambican agrarian sector with the government, private partners and development partners; and also a member of the Governing Council of CTA (Confederation of Business Associations).
He is a commercial farmer in the area of certified seed production in the central region of Mozambique and small-scale farmer involved in agricultural activities in the south of the country.
Ricardo Costa Pereira is a founding member and current President of the Board of the Mozambican Renewable Energy Association (AMER).
Ricardo has been working for over a decade in the renewable energy sector in Southern Africa, specifically in Mozambique where he has worked for the public sector through the National Directorate of New and Renewable Energies (Ministry of Energy), contributing to a series of regulations and legislative documents on the development of renewable energy. For the private sector through a large multinational consultancy company where he led multidisciplinary projects and managed teams in a variety of different countries. For donor funded programs, he was part of the core technical assistance team appointed by the EU and AFD to structure the first competitive tender for large scale renewable energy projects (PROLER). Presently, Ricardo is the Portfolio Manager for AECF’s program REACT-SAA in Mozambique providing end-to-end support to companies that AECF has invested in.
Pedro has over 10y experience in the African Renewable Energy space, led the feasibility of just over 2,500 MW of Renewable Energy in South Africa (REPP), Mozambique and Angola. In 2015 Pedro incorporated SOURCE CAPITAL, headquartered in Maputo, a focused private equity and investment advisory boutique sourcing and managing investable assets in Lusophone Africa. The Energy sector quickly become a major focus and lead to the creation of SOURCE ENERGIA, a subsidiary that is the diversified renewable energy platform focused on the development, management, operations and maintenance of large & small scale on- & off-grid projects in Lusophone Africa, now with offices in Maputo and Luanda. SOURCE ENERGIA current portfolio is made of 350+ MW of Renewable Energy Projects (both IPP and C&I) in different stages, and the investment in one of the leading Solar Home Systems Company in Mozambique.
With 5 years of experience of Mozambican Energy Sector Regulatory Framework, Cândida was part of the 2016 Graduate Program from ABSA Bank, where she was enrolled in the Legal Department as a content assistant first, then in the Governance and Control Department as Money-laundering analyst, relationship manager assistant and debt assistant in Corporate and Investment Banking. Cândida joined Source Energia in 2017 where she primarily supports the project management by leading the Licensing works for of 200 MW Renewable Energy projects in Mozambique.
Mathikizana Matos, has an Electrical Engineer background with over 10 years working experience in the wide spectrum of the electricity sector, with focus in System Planning, Project Management, Legal and Regulatory reforms, and business development across the electricity value chain – Generation, Transmission, Distribution Systems (On & Off Grid).
Mr. Matos’ experience includes long-term service provision to engineering companies and development corporations’ agencies, as well as short term technical assistance to Mozambique’s government institutions and the private sector. Thus, he has been involved in national structuring projects such as the Proposed Revision of the Electricity Law, Electricity Master Plan 2012-2027, Definition of Electricity Sector KPIs for the Regulatory Body, as well as the Rehabilitation of the Songo Converter Substation – HVDC 533 kV.
Currently Mr. Matos, Senior Advisory – Energy, acts as the Country Representative for GET.invest Demand Stimulation Service, being implemented in Mozambique through the Country Window, which is operational in Mozambique since 2019, as a result of additional support from the European Union and Germany.
Rui Gomes is 61 years old, born in Portugal and lives in Mozambique since 1996 , having acquired the Mozambican Nationality in 2007. He has a long professional experience acquired in medium and large companies, as a Manager or member of the Board of Directors in several areas, mainly in Construction and Commerce Industry. His former experience was focused on Commercial, Finance, Procurement and General Management areas. At the beginning of his professional life, he was involved during18 years in the agribusiness activity in Portugal. Since 2015, he is the General Director of Mahubo Chickens, mainly the focus on Production, Administrative Area, Projects and Renewable Energies. Previous experience in the field in Portugal, and the self-learning that has been developed over the years, currently the management of Frangos de Mahubo has a knowledge, both theoretical and practical, of its core business: Poultry, Fishing and Renewable Energies
He is currently responsible for implementing the project “Improving farmer productivity with Solar Energy for Conservation and Biogas for food processing in Quissico” financed by UNIDO. The project aims to implement: A Biodigestor for the production of gas based on animal excrement; An irrigation system powered by solar panels; A cold system for the conservation of fish, meat, greens and vegetables produced locally by the MAKOMANE-ADM Association. Previously, the organization had implemented the project “Protecting Sea Turtles and Underwater Life” with financial support from UNDP SGA/GEF. Among the organization's various initiatives are: Fish farming, Agriculture, Beekeeping, Cattle breeding, Management of Community Drupes (PCR) Savings and Revolving Credit.
He is co-founder and vice-president (2011-2013) of SAMA (Southern Africa Minewokers Association) a regional organization fighting for the labor rights of miners – from Southern Africa with Headquarters in Maseru, Lesotho. He was also President and responsible for the implementation of the TIMS project in the “Community Strengthining Systems” component in partnership with Stop TB Partnership and agricultural project in Chokwe to generate income for families of ex-miners, among other initiatives.
Since 2019, he has been working at MADER/DNDEL as a Technician in the Department of Rural Technologies, responsible for monitoring the Renewable Energy Promotion process, establishing Production and Commercialization Infrastructures with a focus on the integration process of the intervened infrastructures, within the scope of the PROMER in the works maintenance system as well as the Feasibility and Environmental Impact Study
Between 2015 and 2019, he worked at MITADER/DNDR as a DAMTI Technician – Department of Market Access, Technology and Innovation, responsible for monitoring the construction process of systems for capturing, treating and distributing drinking water in rural areas.
Since joining Source Energia back in 2015, Filipa has been leading the Corporate and Project Finance of the company with a pipeline of 200 MW of Renewable Energy Projects. With a master’s degree in Business from Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Filipa has worked with Espírito Santo Investment Bank in Portugal and later joined Moza Banco in Mozambique. She acquired valuable experience in Corporate Finance and Advisory and was involved in several real estate and tourism deals. She has also worked with the major DFI’s operating in Mozambique.
With a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Faculty of Engineering of Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Michel has rapidly enrolled with the Solar Power business in the early stages of his career by joining Catalyst Energy as a Power Development Engineer for Off-grid solar projects in late 2020 through an internship. Before on-boarding at Source Energia he also worked as a Site Engineer at Larsen & Toubro, inspecting the assembling activities of the first 400 kV overhead transmission line to be deployed in Mozambique, through a Trainee Program. Currently at Source, Michel is responsible for the development of Solar PV systems for Commercial & Industrial (C&I) sites focused on self-consumption or captive power.
Eng. Enrico Nunziata, after completing his degree in Electronic Engineering in Italy, received the title of Master in Biomedical Engineering from Ohio State University in 1986, and began working in the hospital environment as an assistant researcher in the Department of Anesthesiology at Ohio State University Hospital. He also began a ten-year collaboration with the Cardiology Division of the same hospital.
In 1989, Mr. Nunziata began working for international aid organizations, both governmental and NGOs, and helped several governments improve their health technology management capacity and performance (up to hospital level). In 1998 he received the Certificate in Health Economics and in 2003 a Master in Health Systems Management. Mr. Nunziata founded the consulting firm BCG-Engineering in 1990 in Ohio, USA, to provide engineering services to the healthcare industry worldwide. In 2008 he opened, together with local partners, MATEMO Lda in Maputo where he lives since 1996. The company, from the beginning, operated in the health, industrial and renewable energy sector, providing systems management and maintenance services.
With the years and the increasing demand for products and services in the renewable energy sector, Eng. Nunziata and his partner, using their engineering knowledge and acquired skills, have increasingly developed this sector that currently constitutes 75% of all activities of MATEMO Lda.
Paulo Raposeiro is the CEO of Epsilon Solar Energy.
With 12 years of experience in managing engineering contracts in Mozambique and Portugal, in areas such as energy, port infrastructure and housing, he has extensive experience leading multidisciplinary teams in complex contracts with clients in the OIL & GAS and Mining sectors.
Graduated and master in engineering from the New University of Lisbon with strong analytical and communication skills; qualified in Portugal and Brazil, has excellent detailed analysis ability; oriented to results, targeted solutions and effective problem solving.
Alfredo Daniel Boane has a degree in Civil Engineering from Universidade Politécnica, and a degree in General Mechanics and Auto Mechanics from the Instituto Industrial de Maputo and Escola Industrial 1º de Maio, respectively. His career began in 1981, at Steia, a national company providing technical assistance to industrial machines. In the same year, he joined Hidromoc EE, a hydraulic company, where he started working with Grundfos, Desmo and Savanehoj pumps. In 1996, he started working at HANSEN & BOODE, LDA, now Blue Zone, which was starting operations and became the representative of GRUNDFOS in Mozambique.
Throughout his career, Alfredo Boane has had several trainings in the areas of groundwater management at the University of Chalmers, Sweden, and in Cape Town, South Africa, as well as in the field of pumps, given by Grundfos, Denmark, and had training in Solar Systems, water treatment, handling of chlorine products and containers, and much more. With over 25 years of experience, Boane is highly specialized in solar water distribution systems; pumping and pressurization of networks, both building and municipal.
A driven investment advisor and business developer with relevant international experience in Strategic & Investment roles in leading Private Equity boutiques with a strong focus on Emerging markets, especially Portuguese native speaking countries. Luis is the Chief Investment Officer of Dominio Capital and Deputy CEO of DC Mozambique. He’s also executive Board Member of Captive Power Mozambique. Previously he held executive roles at Groupon, Hemera Energy and Quifel Natural Resources.
Luis holds a management degree from the Portuguese Catholic University in Lisbon, a Masters in Business from the Portuguese Catholic University, a Post-graduate degree focused on developing businesses in emerging markets from Harvard Business School and a Post-graduate degree focused on Valuation from NUY Stern. Luis is also a Certified Financial Modeler and an invited Mentor for the African Entrepreneurship Award. Luis currently lives in Maputo but has also lived in Lisbon, Luanda and Rio de Janeiro.
Andreas F. Ziegler Mendonça, founder & Managing Partner of SwissSolar Lda, born in Switzerland, is a trained electrotechnician, holding a CAS in Photovoltaic from the Interstaatliche Hochschule Buchs NTB; including a project management role in energiebüro Zürich, the leading engineering company for solar parks, roof-top and BiPV projects in Switzerland. Since living in Mozambique, Co-founder of AMER - the Renewable Energy Association Mozambique.
Júlio Castro has been working in the field of energy, renewable energy and environment since 1986. Since 1988 he is an independent consultant and parallel to that from 1993 to 2009 was senior energy advisor for DGIS, The Netherlands.
The consultant has 34 years of experience in the field of renewable rural energy and 33 years of experience in developing countries, having in the past decade worked mainly in Africa with programmes trying to increase energy access especially in rural areas. The consultant has -to date- been involved in 120 projects in more than 65 countries. In the beginning of his carrier he participated in several projects in the design of photovoltaics water pumping facilities for rural water supply, diesel power plant capacity analysis and design, several wind energy development projects, energy planning studies including renewable energy supply, evaluation and technical guidance of cogeneration (CHP) projects. The consultant has been involved in all stages of renewable energy and rural electrification project development and evaluation. He was also policy advisor on renewable energy policy and strategy which included the early stages of development of FiT in Angola.
Since 2019 Julio is a senior advisor for the GET.invest Finance Catalyst.
As the National Coordinator of the Towards Sustainable Energy for All in Mozambique Project at UNIDO, Vicente played a leading role in the development of an attractive financial mechanism to encourage private sector involvement in the implementation of integrated renewable energy projects in Mozambique. With extensive professional experience in entities such as the African Development Bank, TOTAL, Mobil Oil Mozambique, Vicente has a special passion for private sector development and the need to strengthen business sustainability to ensure a more robust market presence both in urban and rural areas. He holds a degree in Informatics, a Master's degree in Business Leadership from UNISA-SBL (University of South Africa, School of Business Leadership) and since 2021 he is pursuing the Master's course in Leadership in Sustainable Development Finance at the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management.
Oldemiro Soverano Petersburgo Belchior, Mozambican, graduated in Economics and Post-graduate in Banking Management from the Portuguese Catholic University, started his banking career in 2000, having collaborated in several national financial institutions (BCI, BDC, Barclays Bank and Moza)where he held management positions in the areas of Corporate, Credit, Risk Management and Asset Recovery. He is the author of the literary work "Financiamento PME", published in July 2015.
Founding member of Moza Banco, he was also Economic Advisor to the Mozambican Bank Association and Adviser to the Mozambique Chamber of Commerce. He has published several opinion articles on specialty pages, such as in Diário Económico, Revista "100 Melhores PME" and "Economia e Mercados", Semanário Económico do "País" and "Notícias".
He is the author of the book "Financiamento PME - Guia Prático no Acesso ao Crédito", published in July 2015, which became a best seller in the Mozambican market.
He is currently Director of the Office of Economic Studies of Millennium BIM. He is Vice President of the Financial Policy and Services Department at the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA).
Mayra Pereira is the founder of Gaia Consulting. She has specialized over the years in renewable energy, environment and sustainability fields. Mayra is an integrated professional with an MSc in Environmental and Geographical Sciences and BSc (Hons) in Environmental Management from the University of Cape Town. She has over 14 years of work experience in the energy and environment sectors, particularly in the fields of research and design (policy, feasibility studies), management of large-scale projects and business development services. Since May 2022, she has also been elected has the new President of ALER.
