DRC Targets 2 GW Clean Energy Expansion in Landmark US-Congolese Partnership

Historic ANSER agreement seeks to power mining, expand rural electrification and mobilize international investment as the DRC strengthens its position in the global clean-energy and critical-minerals economy.

By Ajong Mbapndah L

The Democratic Republic of Congo has taken a major step toward addressing one of the biggest constraints on its economic development, signing a landmark agreement with a US-Congolese consortium to develop up to 2 gigawatts of clean-energy infrastructure across the country.

The agreement brings together the National Agency for Electrification and Energy Services in Rural and Peri-Urban Areas (ANSER) and the Grand DRC Electrification & Mining Development Consortium in an ambitious public-private partnership designed to simultaneously tackle the country’s industrial power deficit and expand electricity access to underserved communities.

Signed on Thursday, August 6, 2026, during a ceremony linking the Hilton Kinshasa with participants at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., the Memorandum of Understanding envisages the development, financing, construction and operation of a clean-energy portfolio with total capacity of between 1.5 GW and 2 GW.

The initiative could have far-reaching implications for a country whose enormous mineral wealth has increasingly placed it at the centre of global competition for critical minerals needed for electric vehicles, batteries and the broader energy transition.

Yet despite the DRC’s strategic mineral importance and vast energy potential, inadequate electricity supply remains a significant obstacle to industrialisation, mineral processing and improvements in living standards. The new partnership seeks to change that equation.

Powering Mines While Electrifying Communities

Under the proposed model, the bulk of the new generating capacity will serve major mining operators, particularly in the country’s mineral-rich regions, providing more reliable and lower-carbon electricity for industrial operations.

But the agreement also embeds a significant social component. Ten percent of installed capacity — potentially as much as 200 MW if the programme reaches its 2 GW target — is expected to be reserved for local communities, small and medium-sized enterprises and community infrastructure.

That approach is intended to ensure that major energy investments supporting the mining industry also produce tangible benefits for communities surrounding industrial operations.

For ANSER Director General Cyprien Musimar Ndele, the initiative reflects President Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo’s broader ambition to place reliable and affordable energy at the centre of the country’s economic transformation.

“His bold vision places universal access to clean, reliable and affordable energy at the very heart of the socio-economic transformation of the Democratic Republic of Congo,” Musimar Ndele said in remarks paying tribute to President Tshisekedi.

He linked the initiative to the presidential “Debout Jeunes Congolais” programme launched on June 30, 2026, arguing that major investments must translate into lasting economic opportunities for Congolese citizens, particularly young people.

Faced with the scale of electricity needs in rural and peri-urban communities, ANSER increasingly sees public-private partnerships as an essential mechanism for accelerating electrification without placing the entire financial burden on the state.

Tackling a Critical Constraint on Congo’s Mining Ambitions

The energy deficit has particular significance for the DRC’s mining industry. The country occupies an extraordinary position in global mineral supply chains, particularly for copper and cobalt, while growing international interest in critical minerals has increased pressure for the DRC to capture more value domestically rather than simply exporting raw materials.

Reliable electricity is indispensable to that ambition. Mining operations require enormous quantities of dependable power, while refining, processing and other value-addition activities demand even greater electricity availability.

By directing most of the planned generation capacity toward industrial users, the consortium hopes to provide mining companies with the dependable power required to increase production and expand local processing.

Long-term power purchase agreements with mining companies are also expected to provide predictable revenue streams capable of strengthening the bankability of individual projects.

The model essentially seeks to use industrial demand as an anchor for investment while ensuring that surrounding communities share in the resulting energy infrastructure.

Solar, Hybrid Systems and Microgrids

Rather than relying on a single technology, the planned portfolio will combine several generation models suited to the DRC’s geography and different categories of consumers.

Large-scale solar photovoltaic plants are expected to form a central component, alongside hybrid solar-gas and battery-storage systems. Off-grid microgrids are also envisaged, particularly for communities where connection to conventional national transmission infrastructure is difficult or economically prohibitive.

The diversified approach could prove particularly important in a country the size of the DRC, where extending traditional grid infrastructure across vast distances presents significant financial and logistical challenges.

The partnership also envisages technology and knowledge transfer to Congolese engineers, adding a human-capital component to the physical infrastructure investment.

US-Congolese Consortium Brings Finance and Technical Expertise

The Grand DRC Electrification & Mining Development Consortium combines Congolese operational capacity with international investment, infrastructure and technology expertise.

Kasai Corporation SARL, led by Remy Kankola Kamana, will serve as the industrial anchor and operational lead on the ground. Its responsibilities include coordination with ANSER, logistics and engagement with mining companies.

Washington-based impact investment manager Small Enterprise Assistance Funds (SEAF), represented by co-founder Hubertus van der Vaart, is expected to play a central role in structuring the project’s financial architecture while helping channel investment toward Congolese SMEs.

The Global Connective Center, under retired US Major General John F. Wharton, brings expertise in critical-infrastructure planning and a “Whole of Nation” approach to implementation.

The Global Solutions Institute, chaired by Mark W. Grobmyer, will provide international policy and technology support, including facilitating the deployment of advanced clean-energy technologies.

Together, the partners are seeking to build an investment platform capable of attracting international capital on a scale commensurate with the DRC’s energy needs.

Mobilising International Capital

Financing will be crucial to turning the ambitious memorandum into operating power plants.

The consortium envisages Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Financing (EPC+F) and Engineering, Procurement, Construction Management and Financing (EPCM+F) structures to help move projects from development to execution.

Potential capital sources include export credit agencies, development finance institutions, international commercial banks and green infrastructure funds.

Long-term power purchase agreements with mining companies are expected to serve as another critical pillar of the financing structure by providing investors and lenders with greater revenue certainty.

The combination of industrial off-takers, international financing institutions and government support could offer a template for addressing infrastructure gaps without relying exclusively on public financing.

Balancing Investment With Social Impact

Kasai Corporation Director General Remy Kankola Kamana said the initiative demonstrates that commercial viability and social development do not have to be competing objectives.

“Kasai Corporation is proud to serve as a bridge between mining industry demand, international expertise and the fundamental needs of our communities,” Kamana said.

“This project demonstrates that it is possible to reconcile economic profitability with sustainable social impact in the DRC.”

That balance could become one of the initiative’s most important tests.

Mining communities across Africa have frequently raised concerns about living alongside multibillion-dollar extractive operations while lacking basic electricity, roads, water and other infrastructure.

Dedicating up to 200 MW to communities and SMEs could therefore give the project significance beyond its industrial objectives, particularly if the power translates into new businesses, jobs, healthcare services, education opportunities and local economic activity.

ANSER Pledges Support

ANSER has pledged to facilitate implementation while ensuring that projects comply with Congolese law and international standards.

“To our esteemed consortium partners, I wish to assure you that ANSER will remain a committed, responsive and reliable partner, fully dedicated to facilitating the successful implementation of this cooperation,” Musimar Ndele said.

He added that implementation would remain guided by “the laws of the DRC, international best practices and the legitimate interests of our people.”

“We are making this partnership a benchmark for public-private cooperation for sustainable development,” he said.

A New Signal in DRC-US Economic Relations

Beyond its immediate energy implications, the agreement also carries significance for the expanding economic relationship between Kinshasa and Washington.

The DRC’s immense reserves of minerals critical to electric vehicles, battery storage and advanced technologies have elevated the country’s strategic importance at a time when the United States and other major economies are seeking more diversified and resilient critical-mineral supply chains.

For Kinshasa, that attention presents an opportunity to attract greater international investment while pressing for partnerships that extend beyond mineral extraction into infrastructure, processing, industrialisation, skills development and local economic transformation.

The ANSER-consortium initiative fits squarely within that emerging agenda.

If successfully financed and implemented, the planned 1.5–2 GW portfolio could help ease power constraints facing mining companies, provide electricity to underserved communities, stimulate SME development and create new opportunities for Congolese engineers and young people.

More importantly, it could demonstrate how the DRC’s mineral wealth and enormous energy needs can be addressed within the same development equation.

For a country seeking to transform its natural-resource advantage into broader prosperity, the agreement sends a powerful message: the future of Congo’s mining industry cannot be separated from the future of its energy sector — and the communities living alongside both.