WEST AFRICA EXPANDS REGIONAL POWER GRID

West African countries are making progress towards a more connected electricity market, with more than 4,000 kilometres of high-voltage transmission lines now linking the power grids of 15 countries.

The World Bank said the development is helping countries trade electricity across borders and improve access to power in areas that have struggled with shortages.

Regional electricity trade currently accounts for about eight per cent of power generated in West Africa, bringing the region closer to the 10 to 12 per cent level recorded in the European Union.

The regional integration programme also helped more than three million people in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone and The Gambia gain access to electricity services between 2019 and 2025.

The World Bank explained that some countries previously had excess electricity but lacked the transmission infrastructure needed to supply neighbouring nations experiencing shortages.

Major interconnection projects, including the Côte d’Ivoire-Liberia-Sierra Leone-Guinea line and the Guinea-Guinea-Bissau-The Gambia-Senegal transmission loop, are helping to address the problem.

The system also allows countries with cheaper sources of electricity, particularly hydropower, to supply neighbouring markets and reduce dependence on more expensive fuel-based generation.

In Guinea-Bissau, the regional connection helped reduce the national utility’s generation costs from about 25 US cents per kilowatt-hour to 11 US cents. The Gambia also recorded about 42 per cent in cost savings.

The initiative has supported the development of the West African regional electricity market through the West African Power Pool and the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority.

The World Bank said the transmission projects have also created more than 52,000 direct and indirect jobs across engineering, construction, logistics, project management and maintenance.

It added that further interconnector projects are being developed as West Africa seeks to strengthen electricity access, improve the finances of power utilities and support economic growth.