EKP Infrastructure Advisors

Africa's infrastructure gap is not a shortage of capital. It's a shortage of execution.

Execution-first advisory · Water & Power Infrastructure · Africa & Southeast Asia

USD 2.5T
African infrastructure
in the pipeline
10%
of feasibility projects
reach financial close
30+ yrs
originating & closing
infrastructure assets

Africa holds USD 2.5 trillion of infrastructure in the pipeline. Only 10% of projects at feasibility reach financial close — not because capital is absent, but because the practitioner layer that turns viable concepts into bankable, closeable transactions is chronically thin. I close that gap — through direct transaction leadership, blended finance structuring, DFI negotiation at principal level, and consortium leadership from origination through to financial close.

Representative experience
500+ MW
Hydropower pipeline developed
at SVP level · East & Southern Africa
70,000 m³/day
Naivasha bulk water PPP
Kenya · USD 100M consortium
USD 77M
Farm-in executed to close
Gabon exploration blocks
10+
African sovereigns & multilateral
lenders negotiated at principal level
Who engages EKP
  • Infrastructure developers entering or scaling in African markets
  • Capital providers evaluating infrastructure asset exposure
  • DFIs requiring operator-grade project review and structuring support
  • Investment committees requiring independent commercial assessment
  • Utilities and project companies seeking PPP structuring support
  • Platforms seeking an embedded operating or co-development partner
Engagement models
  • Strategic advisor — retained across the transaction lifecycle
  • PPP structuring — capital stack design through to financial close
  • Co-development — active partner in origination and structuring
  • Operating partner — hands-on commercial and operational leadership
Pro Bono · First Engagement
2-Day Project Diagnostic & Bankability Report

For projects with genuine development potential: a structured written assessment — not a meeting — delivered in two days at no cost. No obligation to engage further.

Request a diagnostic →
Five structural market failures I address
8–9 yr avg. concept-to-close · DBSA
The Project Preparation Gap
Feasibility, environmental assessment, and risk analysis are chronically underfunded. Projects sit idle for nearly a decade before capital moves.
I provide operator-grade preparation from concept to bankability.
Private sector = 3% of PIDA investment · AfDB
Blended Finance Mis-structuring
Very few practitioners can architect a stack integrating concessional capital, DFI debt, political risk instruments, and commercial equity into a single investable transaction.
I have structured this across water, hydropower and energy in 10+ markets.
USD 60B annual funding gap · BCG 2025
The Operator–Capital Divide
DFIs cannot assess operational viability. Developers cannot speak to capital providers on their terms. Viable deals die in this gap.
As active developer and IC member, I sit on both sides simultaneously.
55% drop in Chinese infra inflows · 2022
Retraction of Traditional Intermediaries
BRI has contracted sharply. ODA advisory budgets are being cut. The layer that historically prepared African projects is hollowing out, leaving orphaned deals.
Independent practitioners with active DFI relationships fill this gap directly.
Coordination = top execution blockage · BCG 2026
Government PPP Capacity Gap
Governments across the continent lack the capability to structure competitive PPP tenders or negotiate with sophisticated investors. Deals are captured, derailed, or abandoned.
I have negotiated with ministers and DFI counterparts directly across 10+ African markets.
Why these failures compound
Poor preparation causes information asymmetry. Asymmetry mis-structures the finance. Mis-structured finance fails at IC. Failed deals deepen the ODA retraction. Addressing all five in a single mandate is disproportionately more effective than five separate advisers.
What I do
Project Origination & Development
Retained · Co-Developer · Mandate
Market entry, pre-feasibility, PPP structuring, DFI engagement, government negotiation, consortium assembly, and financial close across water, hydropower, and energy assets — Africa and Southeast Asia.
Blended Finance & Capital Stack
Deal Advisory · Structuring
Architecture of the full capital stack — concessional capital, DFI debt, political risk instruments, and commercial equity. Terms negotiated directly with World Bank, IFC, EDF, AfDB, and commercial lenders.
PPP Structuring & Execution
Developer · Capital Partner · Consortium
Capital stack design, PPP bid structuring, consortium assembly, and counterpart negotiation with sovereign and multilateral stakeholders — supporting developers and capital providers from origination through to financial close.
Independent Portfolio & IC Review
NED · IC Adviser · Review
Operator-grade independent assessment of infrastructure portfolios and investment theses for DFI-backed funds, boards, and LPs. IC challenge sessions, board memoranda, and LP assurance reporting.
Pro Bono · First Engagement

2-Day Project Diagnostic & Bankability Assessment

For transactions with genuine development potential, I offer a two-day pro bono diagnostic — a structured review of your project materials, not a meeting. You receive a frank, operator-grade assessment of your project's bankability gaps and a prioritised action plan toward financial close. Qualifying projects typically move to a scoped engagement from there.

Report covers
  • Preparation & bankability gap
  • Capital stack architecture
  • DFI & government readiness
  • Key commercial & political risks
  • Priority actions to financial close

To request a diagnostic:

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Prior Transactions & Experience
Mpatamanga Hydropower, Malawi · 350 MW
Participated in structuring negotiations for the tripartite Relationship Agreement between Scatec ASA, IFC, EDF and the Government of Malawi — one of Sub-Saharan Africa's largest hydropower transactions in active development.
Naivasha Water, Kenya · 70,000 m³/day
Consortium with PIDG, WaterConnect & Invest International (USD 100M). Full consortium structuring, feasibility studies and bid execution.
Scatec ASA · Hydropower, East & Southern Africa
500+ MW pipeline across DRC, Rwanda, Madagascar, and Malawi. World Bank, IFC & DFI financing terms negotiated directly at SVP level.
Ophir Energy · Kalimantan Gas Field, Indonesia
VP-level P&L on USD 40M gas and condensate asset. New field brought on-stream; government approval secured for 10 mmscfd expansion.
Ophir Energy · Gabon · USD 77M Farm-in
Full deal execution across Gabon exploration blocks from term sheet to financial close. Subsequently negotiated OMV's exit.
Scatec ASA · Floating Solar, East & Southern Africa
Led evaluation of floating solar opportunities co-located on hydropower reservoirs across East and Southern Africa — assessing technical feasibility, grid integration, and incremental generation potential to optimise existing hydro asset value.
Battery Storage & Power Stabilisation · UAE-incorporated
Non-Executive Director of a UAE-incorporated start-up deploying grid-scale battery storage and power stabilisation solutions across Africa and Southeast Asia. Providing strategic governance and market development advisory to the founding team.
About the Principal

EKP Advisors is led by Dr Ernest Kofi Poku — former Executive Director of Africa Water Infrastructure Development Ltd and currently Non-Executive Director and Investment Committee Member at AECF, a USD 300M DFI-backed blended finance fund. He brings 30+ years of experience originating, structuring, and operating large-scale water, energy, and hydropower assets across Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. Beyond transaction structuring, he has held direct P&L responsibility across producing energy and water assets in Southeast Asia and Africa, bringing operator judgement — not just advisory frameworks — to every mandate.

Academic
🎓 PhD — Cranfield University (Medical Diagnostics & Health Economics)
🎓 MBA — Rotterdam School of Management (Sainsbury Fellow)
🎓 BEng — University of Bristol
Professional
🏛 INSEAD Independent Directors Programme, IDP-76 (2026)
📋 Chartered Director, Institute of Directors (UK)
⚡ Chartered Petroleum Engineer & Fellow, Energy Institute
📊 Project Management Professional (PMP), PMI
Selected appearances
Africa's Green Economy Summit · Cape Town Speaker — climate-resilient water infrastructure investment
Water & Sanitation Investors Conference · Nairobi KICC · March 2024 Panel speaker — "Unlocking Investment Deals through Capital Markets Financing"

To discuss a project, a mandate, or the pro bono diagnostic — reach out directly. Every enquiry is handled personally.

Dubai, UAE