Will the DRC benefit from the Inga?

Currently the DRC only has 2.5 gW installed and no early benefit from the Inga. However solar and wind is available now. Existing HEP could fill in the ‘gaps’ when solar is not available. However offgrid power is essential in the rural areas and small towns across this vast country.

Is the DRC a hydroelectric country?

This has given it enormous potential for hydro electric power and almost 100% of its grid power is HEP. The DRC is the largest country in Sub Saharan Africa occupying 2,345,000 km2 with 3.32% as standing water including rivers and lakes. Its sheer size, lush vegetation and landscape has been its problem since independence in 1960.

What is the capital of Congo?

The largest city and capital is Kinshasa with 12 million in an urban area of 600 km2. It stands on the Congo river at the head of the Congo navigation system from where a railway carries exports and brings in imports from the port of Matadi.

What was the main transport artery in the Congo?

When Europeans entered the Congo in the mid 19 th Century the Congo river was the main transport artery. During the Belgian colonial rule they operated a series of ferries that worked like a train service from Kisangani all the way to Kinshasa calling at each river port. Direct ferries are now long gone as there are major problems with navigation.