NAIROBI, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Boosted by improved policy and regulatory frameworks and technological innovations, the market size for mini-grids in sub-Saharan Africa is estimated at 391 billion shillings (about 3.6 billion U.S. dollars), the African Development Bank (AfDB) said on Wednesday.

Wale Shonibare, director of energy financing solutions, policy and regulation at the ADB, pointed out at a virtual meeting that the cheapest way for the continent to have full access to electricity by 2030 and for the demand of newly connected households to be met is to accelerate the deployment of mini-grids and systems. my autonomous ones.

“So far, 1,890 mini-grids have been installed in the region and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Nigeria have the greatest potential in terms of the mini-grid market,” said Mr. Shonibare during the energy outlook webinar, which focused on financing and regulatory trends in the African electricity sector.

The pan-African bank is currently implementing a number of different initiatives, such as market demarcation and financing solutions to support the creation of a sustainable mini-grid market in Africa, Mr. Shonibare noted.

With an estimated 600 million Africans without access to electricity, there is a strong need to accelerate Africa's regional integration and develop electrical infrastructure at the regional level so that countries with excess electricity can sell it to those who do not have enough, he stressed.

Africa's regional power pools are characterized by investment deficits in electricity production and transmission at the national level, the ADB official continued.

“Other challenges they face include the lack of trust between member states, the weak will to liberalize markets, the dominance of national energy suppliers as well as the preference for bilateral agreements over regional agreements,” Mr. Shonibare said.

The ADB noted that the use of auctions to license energy projects is a well-established trend in Africa to ensure the most transparent and competitive process that will accelerate the downward trend in costs and tariffs for renewable energy projects.