Last week, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency launched the Africa Power Vision (APV) for the African continent at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and at EnergyNet‘s “Powering Africa Summit” in Washington, D.C.

Based on the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), APV is a long-term plan for increasing access to reliable and affordable energy by using Africa’s diversified energy resources in a coherent and well balanced manner, consistent with Agenda 2063, Africa’s new transformation strategy. APV primarily seeks to drive and rapidly accelerate the implementation of critical energy projects in Africa under PIDA. Unanimously endorsed by the African Heads of State at their Summit in 2012, PIDA is the continent’s framework to close Africa’s massive infrastructure gap across transport, energy, and water sectors as well as Information Communication Technologies (ICTs). The 13 priority energy projects outlined in the APV represent a first proposed step in terms of how the agreed upon vision/plan for increasing access to reliable and affordable energy can be implemented.

The APV aims to achieve a continent-wide 80% residential electrification rate by 2040 and 90% for industry/business, with sufficient power to deliver to those connected, while also implementing off-grid solutions and making full usage of the vast renewable energy resources available in Africa.

APV’s Implementation Plan, which was endorsed by the African Union Summit’s NEPAD Heads of State and Government Committee on January 29 in Addis Ababa, proposes a specific methodology for designating 13 high priority energy projects. They range from wind, solar, hydro, gas, and geothermal generation projects, as well as pipelines and transmission interconnectors.

In September 2014, the NEPAD Agency and the U.S. Government’s Power Africa initiative signed a Memorandum of Understanding, which laid out our commitment to collaborate and to
look for opportunities to work together to accelerate the implementation of African-driven priority energy projects throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Power Africa has set an ambitious goal of adding 30,000 megawatts of new, cleaner electricity generation capacity and increasing electricity access by at least 60 million new household and business connections in all of sub-Saharan Africa.
  
In countries where APV priority projects are located and where Power Africa has a presence, Power Africa will explore opportunities for its transaction advisors to provide technical support to advance projects as appropriate.