magic bullet?

Is DRC’s Grand Inga Dam project a panacea to SADC power crisis?

By The Africa Report

Reserved for subscribers

Posted on January 4, 2023 15:31

© The Grand Inga Dam hydroelectric power project in the Democratic Republic of Congo,(photo: @east_facts) — The Grand Inga Dam hydroelectric power project in the Democratic Republic of Congo,(photo: @east_facts)

Power deficits now threaten Southern African countries’ economies. Zimbabwe and South Africa are some of the hardest hit countries in the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region. Consequently, there is now growing discussion that DRC’s Grand Inga Dam project may be a panacea to the SADC power crisis.

Zimbabwe’s power crisis is so acute that 22-hour-per-day load shedding schedules have been introduced to free the load in the power grid during peak hours.

There's more to this story

Get unlimited access to our exclusive journalism and features today. Our award-winning team of correspondents and editors report from over 54 African countries, from Cape Town to Cairo, from Abidjan to Abuja to Addis Ababa. Africa. Unlocked.

Subscribe Now

cancel anytime

Already a a subscriber Sign In

More Politics

© A view of the newly-commissioned Dangote Petroleum refinery in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria May 22, 2023. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja

distribution details

Will Dangote’s Refinery solve Nigeria’s fuel consumption problems? President Muhammadu Buhari commissioned the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Plant, the world’s largest single-train refinery, on 22 May in Lagos am...

Coffee With

Angélique Kidjo, an encounter beyond space and time Fresh from winning the prestigious Polar Music Prize, the Benin-born singer tells The Africa Report what motivates her to cross cultural divides in he...

© A pedestrian walks past a mural depicting Russia’s para military mercenaries ‘Wagner Group’ reading : “Wagner Group – Russian knights” on a building’s wall in Belgrade, on November 17, 2022. (Photo by OLIVER BUNIC / AFP)

Cracking down

US sanctions Wagner commander in Mali in latest crackdown on Russian mercenary operations in Africa The US government slapped new sanctions on Russia’s Wagner Group on 25 May, putting African nations on notice that working with the Kremlin-linked mer...

© Liberia’s NEC civic & voter education agents informing eligible voters in their communities to register using Liberia’s 1st Biometric Voter Registration system on 18 March 2023 (photo: twitter)

checks & balances

Liberia ends voter registration amid cases of voter trucking and irregularities The national elections commission ended its voter registration on 11 May for the general election scheduled for 10 October. But the process was not wi...