Name and Location
Grand Inga hydropower project, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Client
DRC government.

Project Description
The Grand Inga project, which will be located on the Congo river, is expected to generate 44 000 MW of electricity once all the phases are complete.

Inga 3, the first stage of the much larger Grand Inga scheme, will produce 4 800 MW of electricity and will be completed in two phases.

The first phase, the Inga 3 low-head project, will have a capacity of 1 800 MW and will not require damming the Congo river.

The second phase, the Inga 3 high-head project, will add 3 000 MW and includes the construction of the Grand Inga dam.

Five other hydropower plants will be built on the same dam, eventually increasing the plant’s cumulative capacity to 44 000 MW.

South Africa is expected to buy 2 500 MW of Inga 3’s capacity.

Value
Inga 3 is expected to cost an estimated $12-billion to complete. Funding will come from several sources, including the African Development Bank (AfDB), the World Bank, the French Development Agency, the European Investment Bank and the Development Bank of Southern Africa.

The entire Grand Inga project is estimated at $50-billion to $80-billion.

Duration
The launch date for construction of the first phase of the Grand Inga project is October 2015.

Latest Developments
The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Energy and the Select Committee on Economic and Business Development has recommended that the National Assembly and National Council of Provinces ratify the Department of Energy’s (DoE’s) report on the treaty of the Grand Inga hydropower project.

The committees, however, have raised their concerns about security and political instability in the DRC, also questioning the funding of the project considering the financial situation the country faces.

Briefing the committees, Deputy Energy Minister Thembisile Majola has recommended that the committees visit the DRC to enable them to play an effective oversight role.

Meanwhile, South African Ambassador to the DRC Ntshikiwane Mashimbye has explained that the questions raised should be seen in the context of the role that South Africa has to play in the DRC.

“We have lost lives in the DRC. We continue to be present to try to secure that country not because it’s nice to do, but because we know that the day when the giant rises the continent will also rise,” he notes.

Not all questions asked by members of the committees were answered; however, the DoE has committed to responding to them in writing.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
The Grand Inga project has been delayed several times over the past 40 years.

Contact Details for Project Information
Embassy of DRC in South Africa, tel +27 12 344 6475 and fax +27 12 344 4054.