By: Ecofin agency

Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo are planning to build what could become Africa’s longest electricity transmission line, a 1,450-kilometer project designed to strengthen regional power integration and ease chronic electricity shortages in Central Africa.

Acting on behalf of Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi, Congo’s minister of hydraulic resources and electricity, Aimé Sakombi Molendo, traveled to Luanda on May 14 for talks with Angolan President João Lourenço. Teddy Lwamba, head of Congo’s state power utility SNEL, was also part of the delegation.

After the meeting, Sakombi Molendo announced plans for two transmission lines. The first would connect Angola’s Malanje province to Fungurume, a major mining area in southeastern Congo. The second would link Soyo, in Angola’s Zaire province, to the Inga hydropower complex in the DRC, with the capacity to transport 2,000 megawatts of electricity, according to Angola’s state news agency ANGOP.

The two countries plan to speed up technical studies after presenting the project to President Tshisekedi. Officials are targeting an 18-month timeline to complete the Soyo-Inga line and begin work on the Malanje-Fungurume connection.

“We must turn our hydraulic resources into the foundation of sustainable development for our two peoples and build bridges between our countries, not barriers,” Sakombi Molendo said, according to Mediacongo.

The total cost of the project has not yet been finalized, though officials say it will run into several hundred million dollars.

Congo’s Energy Gap Remains Massive

Despite holding some of Africa’s largest hydropower reserves, the DRC continues to face severe electricity shortages.

According to an analysis published in July 2025 by Finances & Entreprises, the country has the potential to generate as much as 100,000 MW of electricity, including 40,000 MW from the Inga site alone. Yet SNEL currently supplies only about 2,100 MW from an installed capacity of 2,800 MW.

Electricity shortages are especially acute in the mining sector, where the power deficit exceeds 1,500 MW, according to Congo’s Ministry of Mines.

As a result, some industrial operators have been forced to import electricity from neighboring countries, including Congo-Brazzaville, Zambia, and Tanzania, to maintain operations.

The project also carries major economic stakes for Angola. Official data shows the country has an exportable electricity surplus estimated at 4,000 MW, which could generate as much as $750 million a year in electricity exports.