Energy Storage Backup Power Supply in the Democratic Republic of Congo

What is the electricity access rate in the Democratic Republic of Congo?

The public version of the resulting report of the effort is available here. The Democratic Republic of Congo’s national electric-ity access rate is estimated at 19%. Less than 1% of the rural population and 41% of the urban population has energy access. Of the country’s 10 million house-holds, only 1.6 million have have access to electricity.

What is the main priority for the Democratic Republic of Congo's power sector?

The main priority for the Democratic Republic of Congo’s power sector is to increase access to electricity. The Democratic Republic of Congo is a large country with 10 million households of which 1.6 million have access to electricity. This makes it the third largest population in the world without access to electricity.

What solar projects are being built in the DRC?

The main existing solar project in the DRC is a 1MW solar mini-grid with 3MWh of battery storage capacity built by Enerdeal and Congo Energy in the city of Manono, to supply the local population and SMEs. Enerkac has also developed a 1MW hybrid plant powering SNEL’s Kananga mini-grid in Kasaï Central (non operational in 2019).

Why does DRC have a high electricity demand?

All segments of electricity demand are severely constrained by supply. Most demand in the residential sector is unmet, partly because DRC has one of the largest deficits in electricity access in the world and high geographical disparities (see chapter 2 for information about access). So is industrial demand.