AEW 2026 launches AI and Data Center Track in Cape Town

The African Energy Chamber (AEC) has announced the launch of an AI and Data Center Track at African Energy Week (AEW) 2026 in Cape Town (October 12-16, 2026).

• Main announcement: The AEW 2026 AI and Data Center Track, led by the African Energy Chamber (AEC), will convene policymakers, investors and technology players to align a unified strategy for scaling power generation around data-driven demand; event dates October 12-16, 2026 and location Cape Town, South Africa. The Chamber says it has engaged world-class companies to develop the platform and will work with governments on regulatory and fiscal frameworks to drive data center, AI and energy expansion.
• Background and details: The release cites global forecasts of 249 GW of uninterruptible power supply demand for IT equipment by 2030 and 374 GW total installed capacity; notes South Africa leads the continent’s data center expansion with Microsoft and AWS cloud zones live and Google expected to follow; reports Kenya ~40 MW of IT load capacity with a projected 30% CAGR through 2028; projects data usage per mobile to quadruple by 2028 and Africa’s energy demand to more than double by 2040.