| Rev | Date | Description of change | Approved by |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 01 June 2026 | Updated with full director, IP, and OE/IE disclosure. | R. Mako |
| 02 | 02 June 2026 | Section 8 rewritten: attribution reframed as principal's professional track record; card-level badges removed in favour of section-level disclosure. | R. Mako |
Legal
Conflict of Interest, Data Integrity & Project Attribution
Last updated: 01 June 2026 · Letlou Energy (Pty) Ltd
Document Control
Revision history
Letlou Energy is committed to the highest standards of professional ethics and technical objectivity.
This policy makes full disclosure of director interests, related-party relationships, structural safeguards,
and our transparent approach to project attribution.
Contents
Director & Related-Party Disclosure
In accordance with the Companies Act 71 of 2008 (Section 75) and our fiduciary obligations to clients, Letlou Energy makes the following full material disclosure of all known director interests and related-party relationships:
1a — Common Directorship
- Letlou Energy (Pty) Ltd — Independent engineering advisory and technical consultancy. The director provides advisory services only and holds no equity interest in any third-party project assessed on behalf of clients.
- Popoentle (Pty) Ltd — Renewable energy project developer. The same director holds an executive interest in this separate legal entity, which operates as a project developer and does not provide third-party advisory services.
These two entities are legally distinct and operationally separated. However, circumstances exist in which both entities are engaged on the same project — as disclosed in full below.
1b — Intellectual Property: ARF Patent & Licence
Letlou Energy holds a granted patent for the Agricultural Renewable Facility (ARF) — a proprietary agri-energy infrastructure concept. Letlou Energy has issued an IP licence to Popoentle (Pty) Ltd to develop projects using this technology.
This means Letlou Energy has a financial interest in the commercial success of ARF projects developed by Popoentle. Where Letlou is engaged to provide advisory or Owner's Engineer services on an ARF project, this IP relationship constitutes a declared related-party interest and is disclosed to all relevant parties — including lenders, off-takers, and any independent engineer — prior to engagement.
1c — Owner's Engineer Appointments on Popoentle Projects
Letlou Energy has been appointed as Owner's Engineer on projects developed by Popoentle (Pty) Ltd. In such instances, Letlou acts on behalf of the project owner and all financing parties, not as an independent third-party assessor. These appointments are disclosed openly — including on the Experience section of this website — and are structured to ensure lender and stakeholder oversight of the OE function.
Letlou does not accept appointments as Independent Engineer on projects in which Popoentle holds a development interest. The OE and IE roles are treated as distinct mandates with different obligations, and we observe that distinction strictly.
This disclosure is made proactively on this public platform and is repeated in writing at the commencement of every client engagement, prior to the execution of any mandate agreement.
The Ring-Fenced Advisory Model
To protect the integrity of every advisory mandate, Letlou Energy maintains clear structural separation from the development activities of related parties.
- No undisclosed equity participation: Letlou Energy does not take equity stakes or success fees in third-party projects. Where a royalty or licensing interest exists (see Section 1b), it is declared in full.
- Role clarity: Letlou distinguishes strictly between Owner's Engineer (acting for the owner/developer) and Independent Engineer (acting for lenders). We do not accept IE mandates on projects where a conflict cannot be mitigated through disclosure alone.
- No steering of outcomes: Technical recommendations are based solely on engineering merit, financial data, and the objectives of the party Letlou is appointed to serve. Related-party interests do not influence the substance of any assessment.
- Separate legal personality: Letlou Energy (Pty) Ltd and Popoentle (Pty) Ltd are registered as distinct companies. They do not share staff or operational systems beyond the disclosed common directorship and IP licence.
The Letlou Data Firewall
Client data obtained through an advisory mandate is the exclusive property of the client. It is never accessed by, shared with, or used to benefit any related party, including Popoentle (Pty) Ltd.
Our data protection protocols include:
- Siloed Information: Client data, site coordinates, financial models, and commercial structures are stored on encrypted, access-controlled systems restricted to Letlou advisory personnel only.
- Staff NDAs: All consultants, engineers, and contractors are bound by individual non-disclosure and non-compete agreements that explicitly prohibit sharing client information with any third party, including related companies.
- No Cross-Pollination: Information obtained through a Letlou advisory mandate is never utilised — directly or indirectly — for the benefit of any development interest, including Popoentle (Pty) Ltd.
- Audit Trail: Data access is logged. Any breach of this protocol constitutes a material breach of the engagement agreement and is subject to legal remedy.
Proactive Conflict Management Protocol
Letlou follows a strict "Identify, Disclose, Mitigate" protocol for every new engagement:
- Pre-Engagement Conflict Check: Before accepting a mandate, we perform an internal check against all known director interests and existing group activities to identify any overlap.
- Written Disclosure: Where any potential or perceived conflict exists — including the standing Popoentle relationship — it is disclosed to the client and/or lender in writing, prior to the signing of any contract. Clients are given the opportunity to raise objections or request additional safeguards.
- Client Consent: Engagement proceeds only upon the client's informed written acknowledgement of disclosed interests.
- Recusal: Where a direct conflict cannot be adequately mitigated — for example, if Popoentle is actively bidding on a project Letlou has been asked to assess — Letlou will recuse itself entirely from that mandate.
- Ongoing Monitoring: Conflicts are monitored throughout the engagement. If a new conflict arises during an active mandate, it is disclosed immediately.
Your Rights as a Client
You have the right to:
- Receive written disclosure of all known director interests before any mandate agreement is signed.
- Request a written confirmation that no related party holds or is pursuing an interest in the specific project you have engaged Letlou to assess.
- Terminate an engagement without penalty if a conflict arises that was not disclosed at commencement and that materially affects the independence of the advice.
- Request the deletion or return of all proprietary data provided to Letlou upon conclusion or termination of an engagement.
- Lodge a complaint regarding a perceived conflict of interest directly with the director at legal@letlou.co.za.
POPIA & Data Privacy
In accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA), Letlou treats all project data as Highly Confidential. We implement Privacy by Design across all engagements, ensuring that your proprietary technical methods, site data, financial structures, and commercial trade secrets remain your exclusive property at all times.
Letlou Energy does not sell, license, or transfer client data to any third party. The Popoentle-Letlou separation described in this policy is a structural expression of our POPIA obligations with respect to purpose limitation and data minimisation.
Professional Indemnity
Our commitment to integrity is backed by comprehensive Professional Indemnity insurance. Our technical opinions are not only honestly rendered but contractually accountable. In the event that a client suffers demonstrable loss as a result of a failure to disclose a material conflict in accordance with this policy, that loss falls within the scope of our PI cover.
Project Attribution & Personal Experience
The Experience Behind Letlou
Rebaone Mako, director and principal engineer of Letlou Energy, has over a decade of hands-on experience in renewable energy advisory, owner's engineering, and lender's technical advisory across Africa. This experience was accumulated through roles held at prior employers and independent practice before Letlou Energy was established.
Letlou's Experience portfolio presents this track record honestly — as the professional history of the individual who leads and delivers every mandate. This is standard practice in professional services: a founding partner's prior experience is inseparable from the firm's capability, even when the mandates were executed under a different entity.
What this means in practice: When you engage Letlou, you engage Rebaone Mako
directly. The experience shown reflects her personal technical track record — the depth of
knowledge and judgment she brings to your project — regardless of which entity held the contract
at the time.
How we distinguish prior experience on the website
The Experience page carries a single section-level note making clear that the portfolio includes both Letlou-executed mandates and prior engagements of the principal engineer. Projects are not individually labelled or disclaimed, consistent with how professional capability statements are presented across the advisory industry.
Where the corporate track record of Letlou Energy (Pty) Ltd specifically — rather than the principal's personal track record — is material to your decision (for example, in a formal pre-qualification submission), we will provide a clear breakdown on request. Contact legal@letlou.co.za for this information.
What prior-experience projects do and do not represent
- They do represent the technical competence, judgment, and methods that Rebaone Mako applies to every Letlou engagement. The quality of the advisory work reflects the individual, not merely the employing entity.
- They do not represent mandates executed under Letlou's professional indemnity insurance, Letlou's contractual framework, or Letlou's ECSA registration. Where these distinctions are relevant to your procurement process, please request clarification before submission.
- No confidential information from prior employers or clients has been used or reproduced. Project references are based on publicly available or general information consistent with the obligations of the principal's prior employment NDAs.
This approach is reviewed annually and updated whenever the composition of the portfolio changes materially. The current effective date of this section is reflected in the document control table at the top of this policy.
Pre-Contractual Confidentiality
Our commitment to early-stage confidentiality
Letlou Energy recognizes that the inception of an advisory mandate often requires the disclosure of sensitive project data. To encourage open dialogue, we voluntarily extend the following confidentiality commitment to all prospective clients during the initial evaluation phase:
What we commit to
- Default protection: We treat all unsolicited project briefs, RFPs, and technical information received via our website or direct enquiry as confidential by default.
- Limited disclosure: We will not disclose your project's existence, location, technical specifications, or commercial terms to any third party outside Letlou's advisory team during the evaluation phase.
- No solicitation: We will not use your confidential information to solicit business from your partners, off-takers, or financiers without your express consent.
What this does not cover
- Public information: Information that is or becomes publicly available through no fault of Letlou is not subject to this commitment.
- Independent development: Information we develop independently without reference to your materials is not restricted.
- Legal disclosure: Information we are required to disclose by law, regulation, or professional obligation (including ECSA reporting requirements) remains disclosable.
Limitations and term
- This is a unilateral commitment, not a mutual NDA. It binds Letlou but does not restrict you from disclosing your own information to others or from sharing our preliminary observations.
-
This commitment expires automatically if:
- We decline the engagement in writing; or
- Ninety (90) days have passed without substantive engagement; or
- A formal mandate agreement supersedes this provision.
- We reserve the right to require a formal NDA before reviewing highly sensitive information (e.g., trade secrets, patent-pending technology, financial models). We will notify you if your submission falls into this category.
Our recommendation: If your project involves trade secrets or patentable technology,
please contact us to execute a formal Non-Disclosure Agreement before sharing detailed documentation.
We are happy to sign a customer-provided NDA or use our standard form.
This policy is a statement of our professional practice, not a contractually binding offer. A formal confidentiality relationship exists only when expressly agreed in writing.
Contact
To raise a concern, request written conflict confirmation, inquire about project attribution, or exercise your rights under this policy, contact us directly:
Letlou Energy (Pty) Ltd
Email: legal@letlou.co.za
Phone: +27 78-4944-034
Responses to integrity and attribution queries are provided within 5 business days.
Email: legal@letlou.co.za
Phone: +27 78-4944-034
Responses to integrity and attribution queries are provided within 5 business days.