African energy experts make progress on continental power system masterplan

Energy stakeholders from across Africa who convened at a recent meeting in Benin’s capital, Cotonou, managed to made significant strides 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 modernize Africa’s power infrastructure cannot be overstated. It is projected that the demand for electricity in the continent will triple by 2040, with industrialization, rapid urbanization, the growing middle class, and climate change being among other driving factors. To that end, the African energy experts attending the 3-day workshop managed 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 produce an optimized integrated generation and transmission expansion plan for the 2023-2040 period. The experts agreed on several important deliverables that 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 realization of the continent’s ambitious Agenda 2063 including the ongoing operationalization of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

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