Algeria's Energy Future was launched at a half-day round-table seminar at Chatham House, London, on Wednesday 6 April.
The report was presented at the seminar by its lead authors, Jon Marks and John Hamilton, and critically assessed by Algerian and international experts. Read more
The African Energy Atlas has established itself as an indispensable resource for energy industry professionals.
The 2011 edition features more than 45 maps and charts drawn with expert care by journalist cartographer David Burles. Read more
Briefings and Reports 2
AfricaHardball is an executive dialogue that brings together policy-makers, industry leaders and analysts to discuss the key political issues affecting African markets in frank and open terms.
The next AfricaHardball roundtable will be held on 1 December in London, focusing on North Africa Read more
Briefings and Reports 3
A detailed and frank analysis of Libya’s energy sector
Published in July 2010, Libya's Energy Future provides authoritative, independently sourced analysis of Libya’s energy sector policy and history, examines the country’s governance and financial record and assesses the potential for international partners to do business with its institutions and interest groups.
On the page below you will find a selection of articles from the African Energy archive. All links preceded by a padlock symbol require a subscription.
Société Nationale d’Electricité (Snel) and the Bureau Central de Coordination (BCECO) have invited expressions of interest from consultants to diagnose and strengthen the management structure for improved operation and maintenance of the 350MW Inga I and 1,424MW Inga II hydropower projects on the Congo River.
After a period of tensions when the Kinshasa government shelved the five-nation Western Corridor (Westcor) company’s plans to deliver up to 5,000MW of power from the planned Inga III unit, the DRC and South African governments are making more positive noises about the potentials for cross-border co-operation to develop the hydroelectric megasite (AE 205/7).
In a first for Democratic Republic of Congo, a small community in Ibi village, on the Batéké Plateau some 150km from Kinshasa, has mobilised Clean Development Mechanism credits in a project registered under the Kyoto Protocol.
Block 5 companies put national park drilling on hold
International concern over drilling for oil in the Virunga National Park, and opposition from local lobby groups including National Assembly deputies, has encouraged the Kinshasa government to block exploration in Albertine Graben Block 5 on environmental grounds (AE 203/15).
European majors accelerate push into Great Lakes as traditional partners falter
The politics are complex and transport routes can be even more difficult than the governance, but European majors are increasingly drawn to Central African upstream plays, often working with Africa-based concerns. This is a response to the Great Lakes region’s exploration success, as well as to the growing volatility of the Maghreb and Middle East, write Thalia Griffiths and John Hamilton Issue 205, 18 March 2011.more
AfDB Inga study launched
The Grand Inga project has been given a fresh boost with the launch of a $14.5m feasibility study funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB). The study will be carried out by Electricité de France and New York-listed Aecom Technology Corporation’s RSW subsidiary (AE 203/6).
DRC/Region: Donors push cross-border projects while Snel struggles to provide minimal services
A new study for the pan-African Grand Inga project and efforts to launch the three-nation Ruzizi III scheme suggest that international backers still have appetite for complex schemes to exploit Central Africa’s hydropower potential. But Democratic Republic of Congo is more focused on getting power into its dilapidated grid and putting utility Snel on a sounder footing, write François Misser and Jon Marks Issue 203, 18 February 2011.more
Ruzizi donors line up
Officials from Burundi, DRC and Rwanda are expected to meet potential investors in Kigali in March to put together an estimated $500m financing package for the planned Ruzizi III HEP scheme, which would supply electricity to all three partner states.
Controversy is growing over the award by President Joseph Kabila of an oil exploration permit in the Virunga National Park, home to some of the world’s last few mountain gorillas. But while international organisations are urging the government to protect the park, MPs from North Kivu want exploration to go ahead in the hope of bringing development cash to the region.
Virunga violence highlights continuing militia threat to IOCs’ exploration plans
Continuing violence involving renegade militias, international oil companies and their security contractors, and government forces in the Virunga National Park area of eastern Congo highlights the wider region’s chronic instability and the problems that poses for IOCs who are entering Central Africa excited by its hydrocarbons potential.
Elsewhere in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, French major Total is negotiating a farm-in on Block 3, held by South Africa’s SacOil and Divine Inspiration Group.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) is close to finalising grants of UA9.69m from the African Development Fund and UA60m from the Fragile States Facility to finance Congo’s semi-urban and rural electrification project.
The presidents of Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola have agreed to establish a joint commission to delineate the maritime border, in a bid to defuse a growing row over the territory and the large quantities of oil its now produces for Angola (AE 198/13).
State comany Société Nationale d’Electricité (Snel) and India’s Kalpataru have signed a construction contract for a second high-voltage transmission line from the Inga dam to Kinshasa.
Tullow Oil has lost an injunction to stop two South African companies linked to President Jacob Zuma developing oil blocks in eastern Congo. Tullow was awarded rights to blocks 1 and 2 in the Albertine Graben in 2006 and paid a signature bonus, but the government subsequently reallocated the blocks. It is pursuing legal action against Kinshasa and the two British Virgin Islands-registered companies, Caprikat and Foxwhelp (AE 194/24).
DRC business model will make investors pay to rebuild the country
The government in Kinshasa is looking to impose President Joseph Kabila Kabange’s vision of how the world should do business with Democratic Republic of Congo, as it struggles to work with a pitifully small state budget, substandard governance and a woeful lack of human resources to meet huge demands for everything from basic health and education services to building transport, energy and other infrastructure almost from scratch. Ministers argue that many of those companies looking to exploit DRC’s mineral resources should spend substantial sums on building physical and social infrastructure in parallel with their extraction projects.
The Democratic Republic of Congo has abandoned plans for an offshore Joint Development Zone for oil and gas exploration, according to Angola’s ambassador in Kinshasa. Issue 198, 19 November 2010.more
DRC, Uganda, Kenya propose pipeline
Energy ministers from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Kenya have established a company to develop a pipeline to run from Lake Edward on the DRC-Uganda border to Kampala Issue 198, 19 November 2010.more
Downstream update
Projects in DR Congo Issue 198, 19 November 2010.more
DRC government revives Inga III with BHP’s support, ambitiously seeks developer by year-end
A request for developers to prequalify to build the Inga III hydropower dam opens a new chapter in the protracted saga of efforts to produce more electricity from the world-scale hydro resource on the Congo river. Having waited years for tender documents to emerge, the government has set an extremely ambitious schedule for potential developers to bid, ahead of DRC’s election year, writes Jon Marks in Kinshasa Issue 197, 5 November 2010. more
DRC ‘basket fund’ seeks investors
Energy minister Gilbert Tshiongo Tshibinkubula Wa Tumba and mines minister Martin Kabwelulu Labilo sat side by side at Spintelligent’s annual IPAD DRC conference, in Kinshasa on 27 October, to announce a new ‘strategic partnership’ along with the Ministry of Transport. Issue 197, 5 November 2010. more
Hydropower agreement signed
The energy ministers of Cameroon and Democratic Republic of Congo have signed a protocol of accord on a joint hydropower project on the Dja River, which forms part of the border between the two countries. Issue 197, 5 November 2010. more
Government warned over PSA on Unesco world heritage site
The government is pressing ahead with a production-sharing agreement in Virunga National Park, North Kivu, despite repeated warnings from Unesco and environmentalists. Issue 197, 5 November 2010. more
Soco drilling
London-based Soco International said the Kinganga-Nyanya-1 exploration well on the onshore Nganzi Block spudded on 1 October. Issue 196, 22 October 2010.more
EIB funds for Ruzizi
Fresh European funding for the troubled Great Lakes region will boost the badly needed Ruzizi III hydro project. Issue 195, 8 October 2010.more
DRC resources controversies raise ‘questions of morals’ and power
The ramifications of President Joseph Kabila Kabange’s decision to remove the First Quantum Minerals (FQM)-led Kolwezi Tailings copper and cobalt project and Frontier copper mine in Katanga province from their developers go ever deeper. Issue 194, 24 September 2010.more
Eni farms in with Surestream
Italy’s Eni has expanded its central African footprint by moving into the Democratic Republic of Congo with a farm-in agreement with Surestream Petroleum to acquire 55% and operatorship in the Ndunda Block. Issue 193, 10 September 2010.more
Inpex moves into SOCO block
Japanese explorer Inpex has obtained approval from the DR Congo government to buy a 20% stake in the onshore Nganzi Block from London-listed SOCO International. Issue 193, 10 September 2010.more
More controversy over DR Congo’s Lake Albert exploration partners
The mysterious companies allocated blocks on the Congolese side of Lake Albert may have links to South African business magnate Tokyo Sexwale as well as to President Jacob Zuma, adding to questions surrounding the deal Issue 192, 6 August 2010.more
Opaque deals and administrative bullying mark DRC’s flirtation with investment pariah status
A pattern is emerging in the way big resources contracts are being reallocated to unknown companies that the authorities say meet their criteria for fit and proper partners, and whose participation will help speed ‘post-conflict’ economic reconstruction. Politics and personal gain seem to be defining features of these deals, writes Jon Marks Issue 191, 23 July 2010.more
The South African angle
Contract developments that may pass for normal in Democratic Republic of Congo are causing concern elsewhere on the continent. Issue 191, 23 July 2010.more
Kisangani grid tender
The Belgian technical co-operation agency is tendering for electrical wiring and related work to improve power supply in the city of Kisangani. Issue 191, 23 July 2010.more
Soco drills, farms out to Inpex
Soco Exploration & Production DRC has agreed to farm out a 20% interest in the onshore Nganzi Block to Japan’s Inpex Corporation. Drilling has begun on the first well, Nganga, in a three-well exploration drilling programme. Issue 191, 23 July 2010.more
Financing structure for Ruzizi III comes into view
The politically complex redevelopment of the Ruzizi River cascade’s power schemes seems finally to be taking shape, writes David Slater Issue 190, 9 July 2010.more
Projects line up for Kivu gas
Several projects are lining up technology partners and financiers in a move to generate electricity and stabilise Lake Kivu’s volatile methane gas. Issue 190, 9 July 2010.more
Tullow threatens to sue as Zuma’s boys move in
While President Joseph Kabila Kabange has secured his political life insurance by giving stakes in eastern Congo’s sought-after Albertine Graben blocks to companies connected to South African President Jacob Zuma’s family, it is not such good news for Tullow Oil, which signed a contract for the same Lake Albert blocks 1 and 2 in 2006. Issue 190, 9 July 2010.more
Tullow’s DRC blocks go to unknowns
President Joseph Kabila Kabange has finally approved all outstanding oil contracts, according to a presidential decree published in the official gazette dated 22 June. But while closing one set of controversies over resources contract awards, Kabila has opened up another with the decision to award Lake Albert blocks 1 and 2 to two obscure British Virgin Islands-based outfits called Caprikat Ltd and Foxwhelp Ltd (AE 185/1). Issue 189, 25 June 2010.more
SOCO to drill next month
SOCO International is preparing to spud the first of several wells to test the exploration potential of the onshore Nganzi Block. Issue 188, 11 June 2010.more
Canada’s Triple Five looks at Cuvette Centrale
Triple Five Group has signed a memorandum of understanding for access to data on oil prospection in the promising Cuvette Centrale region, according to Joseph Pilipili Mawezi, head of the projects department at the Ministry of Hydrocarbons (AE 186/15). Issue 187, 28 May 2010.more
Vulture circles Snel’s World Cup deal
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) states have fallen in behind Eskom Holding’s efforts to make sure South Africa does not suffer the global embarrassment of a major electricity shortfall during the 11 June-11 July Fifa World Cup. Issue 186, 14 May 2010.more
Signs of a breakthrough for DRC’s Inga rehab
With progress on the rehabilitation of Inga’s existing hydropower units, Snel is looking to significantly raise its generation and transmission capacity, François Misser reports from Inga and Kinshasa Issue 186, 14 May 2010.more
While Southern African Development Community (SADC) governments are still officially working out a new strategy to bring more Inga power into the region, Western Corridor member states have decided to close the Westcor company, and the Democratic Republic of Congo government is moving ahead with its own version of the Inga III project, asking the World Bank to finance additional studies and resuming discussions with BHP Billiton about its design. Issue 186, 14 May 2010.more
Heading for the Cuvette Centrale
The Cuvette Centrale (Central Basin) is attracting growing interest from the government and industry, sources in Kinshasa told African Energy. Issue 186, 14 May 2010.more
Kinshasa doesn’t like Tony Buckingham
Companies are still waiting on critical decisions – ultimately by President Joseph Kabila Kabange – on a number of the disputed production-sharing agreements (PSAs) that have been awarded, but never ratified, in the Albertine Graben on the Ugandan border (AE 185/1). Issue 186, 14 May 2010.more
West Coast upstream update: Mixed fortunes for E&P operators in DRC and Congo-B
The fifth instalment of African Energy’s West Coast upstream update series shows an upturn in Congo-B’s crude output as more offshore developments enter production, while IOCs remain anxious to get into DRC’s new frontiers. But while Brazzaville provides a sometimes opaque but still manageable working environment, key dossiers in DRC’s exploration drive remain on President Kabila’s desk. Issue 185, 30 April 2010.more
SOCO signs up Caroil rig
SOCO International has secured a rig from Maurel & Prom’s drilling subsidiary for its exploration drilling programme in the onshore Nganzi Block. Issue 185, 30 April 2010.more
Political shifts give hope to DRC developers
There are signs of movement in Democratic Republic of Congo, where President Joseph Kabila Kabange shifted his interior and security minister Célestin Mbuyu Kabango to replace Rene Isekemanga Nseka as hydrocarbons minister in a reshuffle that trimmed down the unwieldy administration ahead of elections in 2011. Issue 181, 26 February 2010.more
Katanga to benefit from new energy projects
Société Nationale d’Electricité (Snel) has given ABB an order worth $107m to upgrade the 1,700km Inga-Kolwezi power transmission link, one of the world’s longest electricity transmission systems. ABB will refurbish the stations that convert alternating current to direct current and back on the 560MW link it built in 1982. Issue 181, 26 February 2010.more
SAPP tender
The Bureau Central de Co-ordination is seeking bids for the installation of fibre-optic cables and the rehabilitation of transmission lines as part of the development of interconnections with the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP). Issue 180, 5 February 2010.more
Inga projects confronted by a range of difficult decisions for the DRC government and partners
Promises of more institutional reforms and measures to improve DRC’s chronically poor public services will be made ahead of next year’s elections, but Congolese voters – and other SADC governments – could be disappointed as the government struggles to deliver on its commitments at home and abroad, writes François Misser with Jon Marks Issue 178, 12 January 2010.more
Longer term threats to hydro schemes
The Congo river is most usually seen as a world-scale hydro resource, with its basin straddling the Equator ensuring a minimum water flow able to sustain a project as large as the 50GW Grand Inga scheme. But the impact of negative trends in regional hydrology could put even Africa’s mightiest potential hydroelectric power (HEP) resource at risk, according to some analysts. Issue 178, 12 January 2010.more
DRC seeks to further diversify its partners
Before the grandiose Inga projects take shape, more modest schemes may be built. Last October, foreign minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba announced that India had extended a line of credit of $263m to build an urban railway and two hydro dams: a 20MW facility at Katende, on the Lulua river in Western Kasai, to be built by Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd (BHEL), and a 6MW unit at Kakobola, in Bandundu province. Issue 178, 12 January 2010.more
Eni keen to start exploration but needs Kabila’s say-so
Italy’s Eni is keen to start exploration in the Cuvette Centrale (Central Basin) and in the Lake Albert blocks on the Ugandan border, despite problems engaging with the DRC government. Issue 178, 12 January 2010.more
Partners sought for Lake Kivu methane
The Kinshasa government on 12 December instructed hydrocarbons minister René Isekemanga Nkeka to identify companies that could start exploration and exploitation of methane gas reserves in Lake Kivu. Issue 178, 12 January 2010.more
China compromise eases relations with donors
The International Monetary Fund’s annual Article IV consultation has highlighted Democratic Republic of Congo’s dramatic financial problems, noting that while “DRC has made considerable progress on the social, political and economic fronts since 2001… the pace of economic reforms proved difficult to sustain”. Issue 178, 12 January 2010.more
Subscriber Area
require a subscription.