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Amini closes $4m Seed Funding Round led by Salesforce Ventures and Female Founders Fund

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Amini

Founded by AI innovation and technology expert Kate Kallot, Amini is driven by its ambition to build the ultimate African environmental data collection and intelligence infrastructure

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NAIROBI, Kenya, November 30, 2023/APO Group/ — 

Amini (https://Amini.AI), a Nairobi-based climate tech startup focused on solving Africa’s environmental data gap through artificial intelligence and satellite technology, has raised $4 million in a seed funding round. The round was led by Salesforce Ventures (https://apo-opa.co/3T5hoW9), Salesforce’s global investment arm, and Female Founders Fund (https://FemaleFoundersFund.com), a seed stage venture fund that invests exclusively in female-founded companies.

Amini’s successful raise follows a $2 million pre-seed funding round that closed in March 2023. The pre-seed round was led by Pale Blue Dot, backed by Superorganism who also participated in this seed round alongside new investors such as Satgana.

“We are thrilled to support Amini, a trailblazing company at the forefront of artificial intelligence innovation and climate technology,” said Claudine Emeott, VP Salesforce Ventures Impact Fund. “Amini.ai’s cutting-edge technology is poised to redefine industries and drive transformative change. With a visionary team and a commitment to pushing the boundaries of climate AI, we are confident that Amini is poised for exceptional growth.”

We are thrilled to partner with Kate in her vision to build Amini, a climate tech startup uniquely positioned to bridge Africa’s environmental data gap

With a team boasting over 20 years of combined experience developing AI solutions for leading tech companies such as NVIDIA,  Arm and Apple,  Amini is driving the development of an AI ecosystem rooted in the emerging markets they intend to serve.  The proceeds of the latest raise will accelerate Amini’s growth into new sectors, including supporting some of the world’s largest food and beverage companies and consumer packaged goods producers that aim to sustainably transform their supply chains across the tropical belt. This momentum builds on the company’s initial success with corporations and multinationals in the agricultural and insurance industries including Aon, a global professional services firm (www.Aon.com/en/).

Aon’s Ciara Jackson, Global Food, Agribusiness & Beverage Leader, Enterprise Client Group shared “we are thrilled to be working with Amini and believe that this technology offers new opportunities for corporates, farmers, and regulators as they try to close the loop around agricultural value chains.  Insurance is the seed of resilience and we hope that the collaboration between Aon and Amini will create further opportunities to strengthen supply chains and accelerate our climate transition.”

Founded by AI innovation and technology expert Kate Kallot,  Amini is driven by its ambition to build the ultimate African environmental data collection and intelligence infrastructure. The platform enables the creation of real time monitoring tools and ML models to support insights into everything from soil health to water use to flood detection and crop health down to the farm level. The team is focused on enabling large multinational corporations to transform their supply chain from merely rest to regenerative, benefitting human and natural capital at scale. With an idea conceived at COP27, Kate and her team are celebrating the first year of Amini’s rapid and successful development, and Amini will have a significant presence at this year’s COP28 in UAE (https://Amini.AI/cop28).

Kate Kallot, CEO and Founder,  Amini commented: “We are building technology that is designed specifically for Africa to lead an economic transformation for the continent’s 1 billion people. By de-risking the “first mile” of the global agricultural value chain through enhanced transparency, data access, and greater economic inclusion for farmers, we have a unique opportunity to kickstart positive feedback loops which will transform global food systems. Amini is innovating for our people and planet, for corporations, farmers, and regulators by transforming value chains. As new regulation in the U.S. and Europe compels corporations to disclose the climate risks in their supply chains, this new investment from Salesforce Ventures and Female Founders Fund will accelerate the scaling of our business and data infrastructure platform, enabling sustainable growth and powering our business expansion.”

Anu Duggal, Founding Partner at Female Founders Fund stated “we are thrilled to partner with Kate in her vision to build Amini, a climate tech startup uniquely positioned to bridge Africa’s environmental data gap. Leveraging cutting-edge artificial intelligence and satellite technology, Amini is on course to establish the most extensive environmental data collection and intelligence network across the continent. Kate’s unparalleled expertise in emerging markets and AI is instrumental in this venture.” Duggal adds that “significantly, with Sub-Saharan Africa boasting 65% of the world’s untapped arable land, Amini’s data will provide farmers with critical insights for optimal practices, potentially catalyzing a development wave capable of feeding the world, as climate change increasingly impacts global food sources. Amini is not just an environmental endeavor; it’s a step towards a sustainable future for global food security.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Amini.

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Ministers among hundreds of energy-sector leaders to attend AOW event

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Sinclair

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors”

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

AOW: Investing in African Energy (https://AOWEnergy.com) – Africa’s leading oil, gas and energy event – has confirmed attendance for more than 80 ministers and senior officials, representing African governments, energy departments and regulators at next month’s event.

These influential stakeholders will be among the more than 1 600 senior delegates and industry leaders who will be attending the event to develop policy, share discoveries, secure investment, and shape Africa’s energy future.

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors.”

Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention

Among the officials and government ministers attending will be energy leaders from South Africa, Nigeria, Namibia, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, DRC, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Eswatini, Uganda, CAR, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Gabon, Malawi, Morocco, Zanzibar, Liberia, Senegal, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone.

In addition, the event will feature high-level delegations from numerous national oil companies, as well as multilateral bodies including the African Union, (AU), African Energy Commission (AFREC), African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) and the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).

AOW will see these energy leaders networking with C-suite executives and decision-makers from more than 760 top energy companies at daily networking events, to discuss insights, forge new relationships, and negotiate major energy deals.

“We are so excited to see the calibre of delegates at this year’s AOW event,” says Chief Executive Officer of Sankofa Events, Paul Sinclair. “Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention. The high-powered attendance proves AOW is a key platform to enable this intervention.”

Key themes to be discussed at this year’s AOW will be sustainable upstream development; expanding gas value chains; renewables and new energies; adoption of best-in-class technologies; and access to finance.

AOW: Investing in African Energy will culminate in a special anniversary party at Groot Constantia Vineyard to celebrate 30 years of the AOW event.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of AOW: Investing in African Energy.

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Afreximbank approves US$20.8 million for Starlink Global’s cashew factory project in Lagos

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PAPSS

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs

CAIRO, Egypt, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) (www.Afreximbank.com) has approved a US$20.8 million financing facility for Nigeria-based Starlink Global & Ideal Limited to enable the company construct and operate a 30,000-metric tonne per annum cashew processing factory in Lagos.

We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria

According to the facility agreement signed in on July 22, 2024, Afreximbank will provide the funds in two tranches with the first tranche of US$7.48M going toward capital expenditure for the construction of the factory and the second, totalling US$13.25M to be deployed as working capital for the operations of the factory.

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs once the factory becomes operational. It is also expected to support about 40 small and medium-sized enterprises.

Commenting on the transaction, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, Executive Vice President, Intra Africa Trade and Export Development, Afreximbank, said that by supporting Starlink Global to establish a modern processing facility, Afreximbank is making it possible for Africa to add value to its agro-commodities, thereby facilitating exports and subsequent inflow of much-needed foreign exchange into the continent.

“We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria. It will contribute to value creation and to the development of the local community while also improving the lots of smallholder farmers and small business suppliers that will work with Starlink across the value chain,” Mrs. Awani added.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank.

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Sonangol to Lead Decarbonized Oil & Gas (O&G) Development, Says Angolan National Oil Company (NOC) Head

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Sonangol

Participating in an on-stage interview at Angola Oil & Gas 2024, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins emphasized that oil and gas remains a core focus for the national oil company

LUANDA, Angola, October 3, 2024/APO Group/ — 

Angola’s national oil company Sonangol reiterated its commitment to driving sustainable hydrocarbon development during the Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) conference this week. Speaking during an “In-Conversation with” session, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins stated that the company will not abandon oil and gas, but rather advance decarbonized oil and gas development.

We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas

By investing in upstream oil and gas production while prioritizing low-carbon projects, Sonangol aims to boost national crude output, while diversifying and decarbonizing the industry. The NOC is focusing efforts on non-associated gas development, as well as alternative energy sources such as solar.

“We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas. Gas produced from Angola LNG will be used for the production of fertilizer and we are evaluating the utilization of gas in the south of the country, linking gas with steel industries. We also have a blue carbon project, linked to the reduction of carbon through the plantation of mangroves. We have one area in Luanda and have identified four additional areas for this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Sonangol has undergone transformation in recent years: following the creation of the National Oil, Gas & Biofuels Agency (ANPG) in 2019, Sonangol transferred its role as national concessionaire and regulator. This transformation has aimed to make Sonangol more competitive and strengthen its capacity as an upstream operator. Concurrently, the government is partially privatizing the NOC, with privatization set to be complete in 2026. This process will enhance financial capacity, allowing Sonangol to drive new upstream projects forward.

“The transformation of Sonangol started several years ago, when we passed the regulatory, concessionaire role to the ANPG. At the time, we transferred almost 600 employees to the ANPG. After that, Sonangol underwent a restructuring program where we created five core business units from 36 different entities – starting with exploration and production. We want to go public, but we want to do it properly. So, we are currently going through all the processes to do this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital & Power.

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