USAID SAEP – ANGOLA COUNTRY PROFILE

Angola's current electrification rates are estimated at 43% in most cities and less than 10% in rural areas. The Government of Angola has set a target of 9,900 megawatts (MW) of installed generation capacity and a 60% national electrification rate by 2025. The African Development Bank (AfDB) announced a multimillion-dollar loan to Angola's power sector under the first phase of the Energy Sector Efficiency and Expansion Program (ESEEP) in March 2020. ESEEP consists of three components: the construction of a 343-kilometer transmission line to link Angola's Central and South grids, installation of hundreds of thousands of prepaid meters to improve revenue collection, and program management for project design and implementation. SAEP has partnered with the national electricity transmission company, Empresa Rede Nacional de Transporte de Electricidade (RNT), and the national electricity distribution company, Empresa Nacional de Distribuição de Electricidade (ENDE), since October 2019 to prepare loan application documents and critical procurement documents needed to meet the AfDB's funding timelines and support Angola's execution of this ground-breaking program. Angola's distribution utility, ENDE, is expected to be at the forefront of the country's electrification efforts. ENDE's primary focus is to distribute and market electricity nationally through the operation of distribution grid assets. In 2019, ENDE had 1.8 million customers across 18 distribution centers, yet only 600,000 customers are connected to paid electric meters with the remaining customers billed based on monthly average consumption. To increase ENDE's stability and revenue collection, SAEP is supporting ENDE to efficiently install over 1.2 million prepaid meters over the next five years. A key component of SAEP's support was to assist ENDE in the design and set-up of a Project Implementation Unit (PIU), which has been successfully completed. The PIU will manage all aspects of the AfDB energy program, including the procurement and installation of prepaid meters and supporting infrastructure. The Angolan power system comprises three transmission networks: Northern, Central, and Southern. Through ESEEP, RNT will complete Angola's national transmission backbone by connecting the Central and Southern systems with a 343-kilometer line from Huambo to Lubango to include new substations. SAEP is working with RNT to establish a PIU with a dedicated team to manage the project. SAEP support is helping RNT to focus and improve both the preparation and implementation phases of the Central-South transmission backbone project. SAEP also supports the Angolan Regulatory Authority for Energy and Water (IRSEA) to develop a roadmap that addresses gaps in Angola's regulatory environment that impeded investment in Angola's power sector. SAEP is consulting with the management and senior staff of IRSEA to help shape its strategic roadmap.