The Republic of the Congo is preparing a study of the electricity supply needed by its special economic zones (SEZs) and industrial facilities, an exercise intended to identify suitable supply solutions as the country's demand for power rises.
The work was launched earlier this week by Michel Djombo, the country's Minister of Industrial Development, SEZs and Private Sector Promotion. It will be carried out under the supervision of the Ministry of Energy and Hydraulics, implemented by the National Agency for Rural Electrification and supported technically by the United Nations Development Programme.
Four options to be compared
The study will compare four potential approaches to covering industrial electricity demand:
- solar generation combined with battery storage;
- biomass and cogeneration plants using agricultural, forestry and agro-industrial residues;
- connection to the national grid, in places where it is available;
- hybrid energy systems that combine more than one of these sources.
Grid connection is therefore treated as an option conditioned on availability rather than as an assumed baseline. The study is also expected to establish a pricing benchmark for energy solutions in the Congolese industrial market.
Minister questions solar offers
Speaking at the launch event, Djombo questioned solar electricity offers priced between XAF 130 (about $0.22) and XAF 150/kWh, describing some of them as opportunistic, and said international comparisons would help establish fair and sustainable pricing. He also highlighted the cost of relying on diesel generators when supply is disrupted, saying electricity produced that way can cost almost XAF 200/kWh.
Electricity supply constraints are affecting industrial operators in the country, the minister continued, with some companies reportedly having to suspend production lines. Despite the high price of diesel-generated power, he said, some operators remain reluctant to commit to alternative energy solutions and are waiting for market conditions to become clearer.
Commercial models and bankable projects
The initiative also plans to examine different commercial arrangements for supplying industrial customers, including turnkey installations financed directly by the businesses themselves, financing services for equipment purchases and the introduction of independent power producers. The range under review therefore runs from customers owning assets outright to supply by third parties. The work is expected as well to identify bankable projects capable of attracting public and private investment.
According to figures available in the project database of the Africa Solar Industry Association (AFSIA), the Republic of the Congo has 35.6 MW of operational solar to date, 27 MW of which is listed as unidentified commercial and industrial (C&I) projects.