Significant strides have been made in the establishment of the African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM) and the development of the Continental Power Systems Master Plan (CMP), paving the way for major developments to come in the energy sector.

The importance of a well-coordinated strategy to modernise Africa's power infrastructure cannot be overstated. It is projected that the demand for electricity in the continent will triple by 2040, industrialisation, rapid urbanisation, the growing middle class, and climate change, among other driving factors.

On the 3rd -5th July 2023, energy stakeholders convened in Cotonou, Benin, to chart the path forward for the CMP and AfSEM initiatives, aiming to provide Africa with a reliable and sustainable power supply to meet the growing demands of its population.

Major developments are on the horizon as the CMP work plan enters its final development phase to producie an optimised integrated generation and transmission expansion plan for 2023-2040 . Four important deliverables were discussed during the 3-day workshop, i.e. the Baseline and Reference Case Planning Scenario Results, the Additional Planning Scenario and Sensitivity Analysis Results Report, the Economic Cost Benefit Analysis of Power Generation and Transmission Investments, and the Transmission Network Studies Report.

These outputs represent significant progress for both AfSEM and CMP's objectives to curb the electricity deficit and allow a well-balanced sharing of affordable, reliable, and clean energy resources to facilitate the realisation of the continent’s ambitious Agenda 2063 including the ongoing operationalisation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

This bottom-up, participatory process is vital for the successful implementation of the African Union’s far-reaching visions for a unified electricity market in Africa. It also fosters a common understanding of the CMP modelling activities among the African Union Commission (AUC), the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), Power Pools, the European Union (EU) modelling partners, and other key African institutions.

The delegation also undertook a site visit to the West African Power Pool (WAPP) Information and Control Center to take stock of the progress made in the Region. The Power Pool, which is a specialized agency of ECOWAS aims to integrate the national power systems in ECOWAS into a unified regional electricity market with the goal of providing in the medium and long term, regular and reliable energy at a competitive cost to the citizenry of the region. The delegation commended the progress made by the Power Pool and indicated that WAPP serves as a testament of what can be replicated by the power pools.

The final day of the 3-day meeting saw the experts committing to the successful implementation of both CMP and AfSEM with the overall goal of the realisation of the visions of the African Union’s Agenda 2063, AfDB’s New Deal for Energy in Africa, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and the IRENA- led initiative for Clean Energy Corridors in Africa.

The meeting concluded that the implementation of the CMP and AfSEM should be aligned to the transformative socio-economic development agenda of the Continent.

About AfSEM

Officially launched in June 2021, the African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM), an African Union initiative aims at enhancing access to reliable, affordable, and sustainable electricity in Africa. The AfSEM involves the harmonisation of electricity policies, regulations, and market rules across the African continent. As it progresses, the AfSEM aspires to evolve into the world's largest interconnected electricity grid by 2040, connecting market participants from all interconnected AU Member States through intra- and inter-regional electricity trading systems, enabling countries to tap into surplus electricity from neighbouring countries during periods of peak demand, and to export excess electricity during periods of low demands.

By doing so, the AfSEM has the potential to revolutionise Africa's power sector, enhancing energy security, stimulating economic growth, and contributing to climate change mitigation efforts. It will facilitate the establishment of a conducive investment climate to attract investments in electricity generation, transmission, and distribution infrastructure as there is a large market for electricity with a large geographical area and increased socio-economic growth with a population of 1.4 billion in 2020 projected to increase to 2.5 billion in 2050 and GDP of US$ 2.96 trillion in 2022 (nominal values) with a growth rate at 3.9%.

About the CMP

Implemented by AUDA-NEPAD, supported by the European Union - Global Technical Assistance Facility (EU-GTAF), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), CMP aims to establish a long-term continent-wide planning process for power generation and transmission involving five African power pools.

It links generation and transmission plans within and between the regional power pools and the AU Member States to identify Africa’s priority energy infrastructure. This will help to promote electricity trade between regions, harness Africa's vast renewable energy resources, from solar and wind to hydroelectric power, and reap the economic benefits of interconnections. 

The CMP identifies the critical infrastructure needed to implement the AfSEM to enable member states to trade electricity with each other as well as with other regions. The synergy between the AfSEM and CMP ensures the development of resilient electricity interconnections and market-based mechanisms, enabling efficient trading and facilitating Africa's energy transition.