DR Congo Regulator Reviews US$2.3 Billion of Power Projects in 100 Days
DR CONGO · ENERGY
Key Facts
- —The country DR Congo mined about 73% of the world’s cobalt in 2025, yet the regulator estimates only 21.5% of its people have electricity.
- —The regulator The Electricity Sector Regulatory Authority (ARE) reviews power projects and gives operators the green light they need for licences and concessions.
- —What happened On Monday 5 October 2026, ARE’s new leaders presented their 100-day report in Kinshasa, citing US$2.3 billion of project files processed.
- —The numbers The files cover about 2.6 gigawatts (GW) of potential capacity, not power already added to the grid.
- —The gap ARE puts the mining sector’s power shortfall at about 2 GW and the country’s urgent need at nearly 8 GW.
- —What it means for you Congo mines most of the world’s cobalt, and imports met about 79% of US cobalt use in 2025.
- —Still open ARE has not named the power projects or said how much of their financing is secured.
DR Congo’s electricity regulator says it reviewed power projects worth about US$2.3 billion in the first 100 days of its new leadership. Director-general Soraya Aziz-Moto presented the figure in the capital, Kinshasa, on Monday 5 October 2026, Actualite.cd and the state news agency ACP reported.
The sum is the value of projects that operators brought to the regulator for review, not money already spent. The files also cover about 2.6 gigawatts (GW) of potential capacity, in a country whose mines alone lack about 2 GW.
One Figure to Remember: US$2.3 Billion
“If you leave this room with a single figure, remember this one,” Aziz-Moto told the audience, according to ACP. That figure was US$2.3 billion of investment files processed in the energy sector in 100 days.
She said operators arrived with projects worth that sum, and her teams handled them within 100 days. Over the previous five to six years, the regulator had processed only about US$1.8 billion, she added.
Aziz-Moto credits closer contact with companies, according to Actualite.cd. “We brought out old files where the exact reasons for the slippage had not been clarified,” she said.
Her team then discussed the files with operators and guided them step by step, which she called “proactive investment”.
ARE first released these figures at the end of July, the news site Journal de Kinshasa reported at the time. Monday’s event was the formal presentation, and the report was handed to a representative of the electricity minister.
About 2.6 Gigawatts on Paper, Against a Need of Nearly 8
The power projects ARE examined add up to about 2.6 GW across 22 projects, Aziz-Moto said. She stressed that this is the potential output of the projects reviewed, not capacity already installed.
Around 1 GW of that capacity is already within reach, according to event figures reported by the news site 7sur7.cd. The other projects are still being developed.
Aziz-Moto put the mining sector’s power shortfall at about 2 GW. It could reach nearly 3 GW if more minerals are processed inside the country, in line with the government’s plans.
Big cities need another 4 to 5 GW, she said, bringing the urgent national need to nearly 8 GW. ARE estimates that 21.5% of Congolese have access to electricity and plans to update that figure by the end of the year.
A Faster Regulator, by Its Own Count
ARE says it analysed and registered 45 energy projects in its first 100 days and issued 18 favourable opinions. These opinions are the regulator’s green light, which operators need to obtain a licence or concession.
It also handled 17 dispute files and found 83% of inspected installations compliant, the step before a certificate of conformity. About 40 favourable opinions and certificates were handed to operators at Monday’s ceremony.
In July, ARE said it had handled 12 tariff files in 100 days, against four in all of 2025. Tariff files are applications to approve the prices that power companies charge.
Not everything is faster yet. A file now takes 40 days on average, against a legal limit of 30 days, according to figures reported by 7sur7.cd.
New Leaders, a Complaints Platform and Three Partners
President Félix Tshisekedi named Aziz-Moto director-general and Professor Jean-Marie Beya board chairman in an ordinance of 20 February 2026. They took office on 3 March, with Marco Kuyu kept on as deputy director-general.
At Monday’s event, Kuyu presented a new online platform for complaints from power companies and consumers. It is meant to receive, process and track each complaint in real time.
ARE also signed three memoranda of understanding with partners in development, civil society and renewable energy. The partners are CAID, a unit that analyses development indicators, plus the Mwangaza network and ACERD, a renewable-energy association.
Mwangaza, whose name means light in Swahili, and ACERD criticised the 2025 rewrite of DR Congo’s electricity law for skipping consultation. Actualite.cd reported their objections in March 2025.
Victor Matondo, deputy chief of staff to Water Resources and Electricity Minister Aimé Molendo Sakombi, spoke for the minister. He called the results a positive signal to investors, ACP reported.
In late September, ARE and the African Development Bank also worked on new tariff and grid-connection tools. That workshop is covered in DR Congo Sharpens Electricity Rules With AfDB Help (5 October 2026).
What It Means for US Readers
DR Congo mined about 73% of the world’s cobalt in 2025, the US Geological Survey (USGS) estimates. It was also the second-largest copper miner, after Chile.
Lithium-ion batteries are cobalt’s main use worldwide, but about half of US cobalt goes into superalloys, mainly for aircraft engines. The United States relied on imports for about 79% of the cobalt it consumed in 2025, the USGS says.
Mines need power, and ARE’s own figures put their shortfall at about 2 GW. Some mines build their own plants, as Congo’s Copper Mines Are Building the Power Stations the State Never Could explains.
The two governments signed a strategic partnership agreement in December 2025, published by the US State Department. Its preamble cites “the central role of large-scale energy infrastructure, including the Grand Inga hydroelectric development,” in supporting mining and processing.
For investors, the US$2.3 billion is a pipeline of proposals, not capital at work. Faster approvals help, but each of these power projects still needs financing, grid access and a viable tariff.
For travellers and residents, Monday’s figures change nothing yet in daily power supply.
What Is Not Known
ARE has not published a list of the power projects, their owners or their locations. Nor has it said how much of the US$2.3 billion is backed by secured financing.
The regulator has not explained how the 45 projects it registered relate to the 22 projects behind the 2.6 GW. Its July summary counted 30 generation and import projects among the 45.
No dates have been given for when the plants would start producing. It is also unclear how much of the new power would go to mines rather than to homes and cities.
What Comes Next
ARE says it has set up a reforms department and a planning unit to help carry out DR Congo’s electrification master plan. It also plans a training project for future engineers, lawyers and economists, with 70% of places for young women.
The real test is turning reviewed power projects into working plants. Until then, the 2.6 GW is a promise on paper, not electricity on the grid.
More: DR Congo news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is ARE in DR Congo?
ARE is the Electricity Sector Regulatory Authority, the body that oversees DR Congo’s power sector. It reviews power projects, gives opinions on licences and tariffs, and handles complaints. Soraya Aziz-Moto has led it since March 2026.
Is the US$2.3 billion money already invested?
No. It is the value of power projects that operators submitted and the regulator processed in its first 100 days. ARE has not said how much of it is financed.
How much electricity does DR Congo lack?
ARE estimates the mining sector’s shortfall at about 2 GW and the big cities’ need at 4 to 5 GW. In total, it puts the urgent national need at nearly 8 GW.
Why does Congolese electricity matter to the United States?
DR Congo mined about 73% of the world’s cobalt in 2025, and its mines lack about 2 GW of power. The United States imports most of its cobalt, and a 2025 agreement ties US interests to Congolese mining and energy.
When will the new power plants produce electricity?
No dates have been given. About 1 GW of the 2.6 GW is already within reach, 7sur7.cd reported, while the rest is still being developed.
Sources: Actualite.cd, 5 October 2026; ACP (Agence Congolaise de Presse), 5 October 2026; 7sur7.cd, 5 October 2026; Journal de Kinshasa, 29 July 2026; ARE (Autorité de Régulation du secteur de l’Électricité), appointment notice, 24 February 2026; ARE, handover ceremony, 5 March 2026; US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Cobalt, February 2026; US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Copper, February 2026; US Department of State, US-DRC Strategic Partnership Agreement, December 2025; Actualite.cd (Mwangaza and ACERD on the electricity law), 1 March 2025.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief