Congo’s Copper Mines Are Building the Power Stations the State Never Could
DR CONGO · ENERGY
Key Facts
—The growth: Ember estimates DR Congo solar installations will rise 544% year on year in 2026.
—The scale: New solar capacity added this year alone is equivalent to 63% of existing grid generation, on Ember’s figures.
—The imports: DR Congo was Africa’s fourth-largest importer of Chinese solar panels over the past year, at US$249m, alongside US$429m of batteries.
—The anchor project: CrossBoundary Energy’s plant at Kamoa Copper carries 357,000 panels and a 233 MW array, with 526 MWh of battery storage.
—What it delivers: It supplies a minimum of 30 MW of baseload power at all times; a second scheme adds 30 MW more.
—The starting point: Just 22.5% of Congolese had access to electricity in 2024, according to World Bank figures.
DR Congo solar installations will rise 544% in 2026, according to the energy think tank Ember, and the reason is copper. A 233 MW solar array with battery storage began commercial operation at the Kamoa mine near Kolwezi on 12 August.
Why DR Congo solar is suddenly growing this fast
The Democratic Republic of Congo has one of the lowest electrification rates on earth. Only 22.5% of the population had access to power in 2024, and outside the Katanga mining belt and a few cities, connections are close to non-existent.
Figures published this month by the think tank Ember show something changing. The country was Africa’s fourth-largest importer of Chinese solar panels over the last year, spending US$249m on panels and US$429m on batteries.
Ember estimates installations will rise 544% year on year in 2026, adding capacity equivalent to 63% of the country’s entire existing grid generation in a single year.
The demand is coming from copper, not from households
Outside the Kamoa Copper mine near Kolwezi, an area the size of about 230 football pitches has been covered with 357,000 solar panels. The plant was built by CrossBoundary Energy and began commercial operation on 12 August.
It pairs a 233 MW solar array with 526 MWh of battery storage, which lets it deliver a minimum of 30 MW of baseload power at any hour. Kamoa has contracted a second developer, Green World Energie, for another 30 MW of the same kind.
Copper demand is what pays for it. Mining companies in Katanga cannot expand without power, and diesel prices have been volatile since 2022.
Speed is the argument
The Kamoa plant reached commercial operation just 16 months after Kamoa Copper signed its power-purchase agreement with CrossBoundary Energy in April 2025. That is fast for any kind of generation anywhere.
It was also logistically hard. The developer moved 998 truckloads of equipment 3,000km from the port of Durban, a journey averaging 18 days per vehicle.
Set that against the Inga hydropower scheme on the Congo river, which has been discussed for decades. The World Bank committed US$250m in 2025 to prepare the next phase, and its own country director said completing Inga 3 would take at best another eight to ten years.
What it means for the minerals contest
Reliable power is now part of the price of participating in the copper and cobalt trade. A mine that can guarantee its own baseload can expand on its own schedule rather than the utility’s.
That advantage accrues to whoever can finance and build fast, which at present means specialist independent power producers backed by international capital. It is a quiet form of influence over the Congolese resource economy.
It also imports Chinese equipment at scale into a sector where Chinese operators are already dominant. The panels and the batteries come from the same industrial base as much of the mining investment.
Households remain the unsolved part
Around 80m Congolese still have no electricity, and the population grows by roughly 4m a year. The government’s target of 62% access by 2030 is not close to plausible on current trends.
Mini-grids and off-grid solar are the only realistic route to most of those households, and several international developers have entered the market. Financing, not technology, is the constraint.
A government-backed vehicle, the Mwinda Fund, is seeking US$500m to support off-grid developers with grants, concessional loans and guarantees. It has commitments from the World Bank and is due to begin active fundraising early next year.
The grid the mines are working around
Katanga’s electricity backbone dates in part to the 1930s, when lines were strung from the Mwadingusha dam to Lubumbashi to serve the copper industry. Much of that infrastructure is still in service.
Snel, the state utility, has never had the capital to renew it at the pace demand has grown. Mines have imported power from Zambia and South Africa and run diesel to fill the gap.
Building generation behind the fence is the logical response. It is also an admission that the public system will not be fixed on a mine’s timetable.
What this means for the price of copper
Power is one of the largest operating costs in a Congolese copper mine, and diesel has been the most volatile part of it. Locking in solar and storage converts a variable cost into a fixed one.
For buyers, that argues for slightly more predictable Congolese supply over the next decade. For competitors elsewhere, it raises the bar.
What to watch next
The first thing is whether the Kamoa model is repeated: the developer says it is in three other tender processes with Congolese mining companies. The second is whether any of that capacity is ever sold to the grid rather than behind the fence.
The third is the Mwinda Fund’s first close, which will show whether household electrification can attract money at anything like mining speed.
Frequently Asked Questions
How fast is solar growing in DR Congo?
The think tank Ember estimates installations will rise 544% year on year in 2026. New capacity this year is equivalent to 63% of existing grid generation.
What is driving the growth?
Copper mining demand in Katanga. A 233 MW solar array with 526 MWh of battery storage began operating at the Kamoa mine on 12 August 2026.
How much power does the Kamoa plant deliver?
It provides a minimum of 30 MW of baseload power at all times, and a second scheme by Green World Energie is to add another 30 MW.
How many Congolese have electricity?
Just 22.5% of the population had access in 2024, according to World Bank figures, leaving around 80m people without power.
What about the Inga dam?
The World Bank committed US$250m in 2025 to prepare the next phase, but its country director said completing Inga 3 would take at best another eight to ten years.
Connected Coverage
The contest over Congolese minerals is tracked in our pillar Africa: The New Scramble, the rail route that carries them in the Lobito corridor, and the country’s new capital-market plumbing in the law creating a Kinshasa stock exchange.
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