DRC – The Democratic Republic of Congo has restarted plans to sell the power from Grand Inga dam project to the continent.
The ambitious plan had been put on hold due to the novel corona virus disease which has disrupted most of the activities in the continent.
However, at a Council of Ministers summit on June 12, President Félix Tshisekedi announced that the country was planning to market the power potential of the Grand Inga dam at African Heads of State meeting to be held soon.
President Tshisekedi explained that the conference will take place in two stages, one in June and the other in September-October 2020.
According to Tshisekedi, DRC aimed, among other objectives, to present the current and future opportunities of the Grand Inga and to promote all the hydroelectric potential of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Tshisekedi hoped that by doing so, DRC would encourage calls for expressions of interest for the purchase of the energy to be produced.
Africa Energy Portal notes that the June forum will be a virtual high-level multinational and multi-sector forum on the Grand Inga dam.
DRC will lead the meeting in partnership with Africa Union DA-Nepad and the high representative of the African Union, Raila Odinga.
The conference on the Grand Inga Dam will be spread over three days and will bring together the Heads of State and or representatives of DRC, South Africa, Zambia, Angola, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana.
UN agencies, the African private sector and continental African organisations are also invited.
The Grand Inga Dam is a series of seven proposed hydroelectric power stations at the site of the Inga Falls, in the DRC.
Upon completion, the Grand Inga Dam is expected to have capacity to produce up to 40,000 megawatts (54,000,000 hp) of power.
The Grand Inga dam upon success completion would be the largest hydroelectric dam in the world and is believed to have the potential to supply up to 40 per cent of the electricity needs of the continent.
By leveraging the Grand Inga project, African governments through the AU would be able to create the necessary economies of scale needed for progress particularly in the supply of renewable energy.
The Grand Inga Project is a trend setter in Africa, setting the pace for regional cooperation in implementation of large-scale green energy infrastructure projects.
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