Photovoltaic transparent glass in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo, November 25, 2021 - To scale up clean energy production capacity in the Democratic Republic of Congo, IFC, Globeleq, CIGenCo, Greenshare Energy, Greenshare Congo, Volt Renewables, and Nzuri Energy have partnered to develop a large-scale solar power production plant in the country.

SkyPower has signed a joint development agreement with Africa Finance Corporation to develop a 200MW solar project in the DRC.

According to World Bank data, only about 19 percent of DRC's population had access to electricity in 2019. The project was originally developed by CIGenCo, Greenshare Energy, Greenshare Congo, Volt Renewables, and Nzuri Energy. IFC and Globeleq (as lead developer) have come on board to drive the project forward and help it reach completion.

The DRC urgently needs investment in its power sector to meet its increasing industrial demand and production deficit. Together with IFC and Globeleq, we will build a landmark power plant for the DRC that will catalyze its nascent independent renewable energy industry," said Greenshare Congo DRC representative, Dr. Adolphe Ngoyi Kitengie.

Construction of the solar plant is expected to begin in 2023 and should be completed within 12 months. Once complete, it will be among the largest solar PV projects in the DRC. About IFC IFC—a member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets.

The initial strategic partnership framework agreement suggests that energy generated in the first stage is estimated to be 20MW, benefiting over 100,000 people. With the total capacity of 400MW, the multiple power stations are expected to solve the problem of energy inadequacy of DRC.