Angola to Achieve 50% Electrification Rate by 2025 with the Help of Renewable Energy

The Angolan Minister of Energy and Water, João Baptista Borges, said that the country has set the target to increase its electrification rate from 42.8% to 50% by 2025, mostly depending on renewable energies. The minister made his announcement at the opening ceremony of the ‘International Conference – Renewable Energy in Angola 2022’ held in Luanda.

The international conference was organized by the Lusophone Renewable Energy Association (ALER) and Angolan Renewable Energy Association (ASAER), in partnership with the Ministry of Energy and Water of Angola and supported by GET.invest, a joint European program that aims to mobilize decentralized renewable energy investment.

The country aims to achieve at least 72% of the contribution from renewable energy sources in the energy mix by 2025. Angola’s new measure will save millions of liters of fuel consumption annually in the thermal power plants.

Borges said that the energy expansion program is currently underway with the interconnection of several regions, integrating more than seven provinces. The program also includes the expansion of the distribution network inside the country.

Recently, two electrification projects were approved in Angola comprising the eastern and southern regions, with a capacity of 1 GW of solar photovoltaic energy. This will benefit more than 1 million people with the provision of clean electricity.

Last month, the U.S. Government facilitated a partnership between Angola and U.S.-based development firms, AfricaGlobal Schaffer and Sun Africa, for the mobilization of a $2 billion investment for developing the solar project. The project includes the deployment of solar mini-grids, solar home systems, and solar-to-power telecommunications.

Angola’s ‘National Strategy for Renewable Energies’ expects the possibility of installing solar PV plants at an estimated capacity of 55 GW, which is nearly 10 times more than the total production capacity currently installed in this African country.