Electrifying the DRC: Exploring pathways to power

The DRC is endowed with vast energy resources that could be used to electrify the country. But what are the most cost-effective electrification solutions? Should the existing grid be expanded, or should the focus be on mini-grids or standalone systems? The answer will depend on many factors: household, industrial, SME, and public service demand; the availability of energy resources; the existence and condition of current infrastructure; the costs of different technologies; and more.

In this study, Resource Matters and the Energy Research Center at the University of Cape Town present the current context of energy planning (Ch. 1), analyze available data to model potential electrification pathways (Ch. 2), and compare different energy modeling tools, including those with a spatial component (Ch. 3). After explaining their choice of a combined approach using OnSETT, OSeMOSYS, and oemof, the authors present the results of an initial modeling exercise and discuss the methodological gaps that remain (Ch. 4). The final chapter presents preliminary results from an electricity consumption survey conducted in late 2019 in Kinshasa, covering urban, peri-urban, and rural areas.

By Resource Matters & University of Cape Town

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