ENHANCING ELECTRICITY TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION INFRASTRUCTURE FOR INCREASED ENERGY ACCESS ACROSS AFRICA

Introduction

On 1 January 2016, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development—adopted by world leaders in September 2015 at the historic UN Summit—officially came into force.[i] One of the goals contained was universal electrification for all.The 2030 Agenda has set the goalof universal access to electricity by 2030. The challenge is significant. It involves reaching a population with limited incomes, often living in sparsely populated areas, mostly in developing and least-developedcountries.[ii] Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have been lagging behind regarding the issue of electrification, with millions of citizens lacking access to electricity. Though attempts have been made to bridge the gap in electrification since the inception of the sustainable development goals via the construction and deployment of infrastructure like transmission networks and mini-grids, the gap remains large.

UNIVERSAL ELECTRICITY ACCESS AND TRANSMISSION/DISTRIBUTION INFRASTRUCTURE

It has been reported that during the last decade, a greater share of the global population gained access to electricity than ever before, but the number of people without electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa increased.[i] The Tracking SDG 7: Energy report released in 2021 stated that while more than one billion people gained access to electricity globally over the last decade, COVID’s financial impact has made basic electricity services unaffordable for 30 million more people, the majority located in Africa. Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia had the biggest electricity access deficits, with Ethiopia replacing India in the Top 3.[ii]

Globally, the number of people without access to electricity declined from 1.2 billion in 2010 to 759 million in 2019. Electrification through decentralized renewable-based solutions, in particular, gained momentum. The number of people connected to mini-grids has more than doubled between 2010 and 2019, growing from 5 to 11 million people. However, under current and planned policies and further affected by the COVID-19 crisis, an estimated 660 million people would still lack access in 2030, most of them in Sub-Saharan Africa[iii]

This low access to energy has implications for health, education, poverty reduction, and sustainable development, says a UNCTAD report entitled “Commodities at a Glance: Special Issue on Access to Energy in Sub-Saharan Africa," published in 2021. For example, lack of access to clean cooking fuels and technology is a major concern, especially for women and girls, who are disproportionately affected by household air pollution, which caused 700,000 deaths in Africa in 2019.[iv]

Although the existing transmission infrastructure in Africa is inadequate and the power systems in most countries incur substantial losses, there are still notable attempts at elevating the sector and finding a way out of this impasse. For example, the Kpone Independent Power Plant, ?a combined cycle gas turbine power station, is located in the Kpone neighborhood of the port city of Tema, 20 miles east of Accra. It is owned by CenPower Holdings, an independent company comprising local Ghanaian shareholders, along with the African Finance Corporation and InfraCo Limited.[v] The plant began commercial operation in 2019. Also, the Grass Ridge – Gamma Line is a 765 kV overhead Grass Ridge to Gamma in South Africa.[vi] The project is planned and is expected to be commissioned in 2026, with the most recent one being in Senegal, where the national electricity company signed a 200 million-pound construction contract for an array of electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure. It is also worth noting that Senegal happens to have one of the highest electrification rates in the continent.[vii]

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LEGAL, POLICY AND REGULATORY CONSIDERATIONS FOR ENHANCING ELECTRICITY NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE ACROSS AFRICA

Access to electricity in Africa is a major challenge, with many areas lacking reliable and affordable power sources. To facilitate universal access to electricity Africa, innovative legal and regulatory frameworks are necessary to improve transmission networks and infrastructure. Efficient and reliable power distribution can only be achieved through the establishment of a well-crafted regulatory framework. Countries must identify the gaps in their power sector regulatory, legal, institutional, and policy frameworks that need to be addressed to enable, promote, and sustain electrification. Some of these legal and regulatory considerations are:

1. National Electrification Plans: There should be an adequate plan and regulatory framework aimed at establishing and implementing national electrification plans that prioritize universal access to electricity, particularly in rural and underserved regions.

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1. Regulatory Authorities: There is a need to strengthen independent regulatory bodies to oversee the electricity sector, ensuring fair competition, transparency, and accountability; while also empowering regulators to set and enforce standards for transmission infrastructure development.

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1. Public-Private Partnerships: A large part of the challenge is that in most African countries, electricity transmission and distribution remain the responsibility of power utilities, almost all of which are mired in varying degrees of financial crisis. Few governments have been willing to encourage private sector investment in transmission.[viii] There is a need to encourage PPPs to attract private investment in transmission projects, and develop clear guidelines for PPPs, including risk-sharing mechanisms and profit-sharing arrangements.

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1. Incentives for Investments: Provision should be made for financial incentives, tax breaks, and other benefits accruable to companies investing in transmission infrastructure, to establish a conducive investment climate that can attract both domestic and foreign investors.

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1. Cross-Border Collaboration: To create a truly well-functioning power system in the age of renewables, transmission lines cannot stop at national boundaries. Cross-border transmission via grid interconnectors is vital to mitigating the inherently intermittent nature of wind and solar. If power can be moved efficiently around the continent, a surplus of power in one country can help mitigate a deficit neighboring countries.[ix] This can be achieved by fostering regional collaboration and coordination on cross-border transmission projects and by developing legal frameworks and agreements that facilitate the flow of electricity across borders.

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1. ? Licensing and Permitting: Streamlining licensing processes for transmission projects to reduce bureaucratic delays. It is essential that a transparent and efficient system be put in place.

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1. Monitoring and Evaluation: Establish a robust monitoring and evaluation framework to assess the performance of transmission projects against set targets; alongside a regular review and update of the legal and regulatory framework to adapt to evolving needs and challenges.

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1. Financial Investment: Policies aimed at attracting local and foreign investment should be integrated into each country's electricity plans, as inadequate financing presents a significant challenge to the development of the energy sector.

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CONCLUSION

Universal access to electricity is a crucial goal that aims to ensure that everyone, regardless of their geographic location or socioeconomic status, has access to reliable and affordable electricity. The importance of universal access to electricity cannot be overstated. It plays a vital role in driving economic growth, improving healthcare and education services, enhancing quality of life, and promoting social development. To achieve this, sufficient efforts have to be made, to improve the transmission and distribution of electricity across Africa.[x]

[i] ’ Report: Universal Access to Sustainable Energy Will Remain Elusive Without Addressing Inequalities’ (2021) World Bank, https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2021/06/07/report-universal-access-to-sustainable-energy-will-remain-elusive-without-addressing-inequalities Accessed 25 January 2024

[ii] ’ The Energy Progress Report’ (2021) Tracking SDG 7 https://trackingsdg7.esmap.org/results?p=Access_to_Electricity&i=Electricity_access_rate,_Total_(%) Accessed 25 January 2025

[iii] Ibid n5

[iv] ’ Improving energy access key to meeting development goals in Africa’ (2023) UNCTAD (21 March) https://unctad.org/news/improving-energy-access-key-meeting-development-goals-africa Accessed 25 January 2023.

[v] Pecquet, Julian ’ Power Africa: 10 biggest projects in 10 years’ (2023) The Africa Report (10 July) https://www.theafricareport.com/314827/power-africa-10-biggest-projects-in-10-years/#:~:text=The%20Lake%20Turkana%20project%20is,Kenya%2C%20south%20of%20Lake%20Turkana. Accessed 25 July 2024

[vi] ’ Top five transmission line projects in South Africa’ (2023) Power Technology (19 July) https://www.power-technology.com/data-insights/top-five-transmission-line-projects-in-south-africa/?cf-view Accessed 25 July 2024.

[vii] ’Hako, Nasi, ’Senegal sets sights on new transmission and distribution infrastructure; (2024)? Esi Africa (24 January) https://www.esi-africa.com/industry-sectors/transmission-and-distribution/senegal-sets-sights-on-new-transmission-and-distribution-infrastructure/ Accessed 25 January 2024

[viii] Ben, Payton, ’ Africa’s race for transmission investment’ (2023) African Business (24 May) https://african.business/2023/05/energy-resources/africas-race-for-transmission-investment Accessed 25 January 2024.

[ix] Ibid n11

[i] ‘Sustainable Development Goals’ United Nation https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/development-agenda-retired/#:~:text=On%201%20January%202016%2C%20the,Summit%20%E2%80%94%20officially%20came%20into%20force Accessed 25 January 2023

[ii] ’Universal Access to Electricity’ United Nation https://unite.un.org/sites/unite.un.org/files/app-desa-electrification/index.html#:~:text=Universal%20Access%20to%20Electricity&text=It%20involves%20reaching%20population%20with,Costs%20can%20tally Accessed 25 January 2024