Why DR Congo Became Africa’s Fourth-Largest Buyer of Chinese Solar Panels
DR Congo remains one of the world’s least electrified countries despite its mineral wealth. In 2024, only 21.5% of the population had access to electricity, and almost all of that access was concentrated in the Katanga mining belt and a few major cities. New data from energy think tank Ember now show that dynamic may be starting to shift, with DR Congo ranking as Africa’s fourth-largest importer of Chinese solar panels over the past year.
Solar panel imports totalled $249m and battery spending reached $429m. Ember estimates that solar installations in DR Congo will rise 544% year-on-year in 2026, with new capacity added this year alone equal to roughly 63% of existing grid generation. The main driver is not household electrification but mining: companies in Katanga need stable power to expand copper output, and volatile diesel prices after the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have made solar an increasingly attractive way to cut fuel costs.
The most visible example sits outside the Kamoa Copper mine near Kolwezi. There, CrossBoundary Energy has installed 357,000 solar panels across an area the size of 230 football pitches. The 233 MW array began commercial operation on 12 August, paired with 526 MWh of battery storage to deliver at least 30 MW of continuous baseload power.
At the same time, developers are pushing solar beyond mining sites. The government-backed Mwinda Fund is aiming to raise $500m for off-grid energy and clean cooking, while companies such as WeLight, Husk Power Systems and MOPO are testing different models to reach the roughly 80 million Congolese who still lack electricity.
What Kamoa’s 233 MW Array Proves About Mining, Hydropower and Off-Grid Solar
Kamoa and CrossBoundary: a working industrial template
The Kamoa project matters because it challenges the long-standing argument that renewables cannot power major industrial facilities. CrossBoundary’s 233 MW array, supported by 526 MWh of battery storage, is now delivering a minimum 30 MW of baseload power, and chief technical officer Richard Stanford says the first month of operation shows the system is working as designed. The speed is equally significant: the scheme began commercial operation 24 months after the mining company launched a tender for independent power producers and only 14 months after ground was broken, despite moving 998 truckloads of equipment about 3,000km from the Port of Durban.
That timeline gives mining companies a concrete reference point. Kamoa has already contracted Green World Energie for a second solar-plus-battery scheme to add another 30 MW of baseload capacity, and CrossBoundary says it is discussing expansion at Kamoa while bidding in three other mining tenders. If those projects perform, the Kamoa model is likely to be replicated quickly across other industrial off-takers.
Hydropower’s long wait is solar’s window
The contrast with DR Congo’s hydropower ambitions is stark. The Inga Rapids remain a decades-old promise: the World Bank committed $250m in June 2025 to help prepare the next phase, which could eventually yield up to 11 GW, but even the World Bank’s DR Congo director has said completing Inga 3 would take eight to ten years “at best”. A national grid capable of reaching remote towns is, according to Global Energy Alliance country lead Lyza Shodu, “impossible to imagine” in the foreseeable future.
That gap explains why solar’s modular, mass-produced design is becoming the default near-term solution. A large solar farm can be built far faster than large hydropower or transmission infrastructure, and its deployable size fits both industrial sites and off-grid communities.
The split over mini-grids and portable batteries
For villages beyond the mining belt, the more important debate is which off-grid model can scale. Shodu argues off-grid solar will play a “dominant role” in the country’s goal of raising electrification to 62% by 2030, and mini-grid developers including WeLight and Husk Power Systems have already entered the market. But David Ekabouma, CEO of GreenMax Capital Group, warns that financing will become the bottleneck; the Mwinda Fund he manages is targeting $500m and plans to begin active fundraising early next year.
Not all developers agree that mini-grids are the right vehicle for the lowest-income customers. MOPO’s chief operating officer Luke Burras says the mini-grid model is not flexible enough to serve everyone from the poorest households to high-volume users. MOPO is instead renting out portable batteries of varying sizes and recharging them at solar-powered hubs, a model it says can reach customers several orders of magnitude deeper than mini-grids. The outcome is likely a segmented market: mini-grids where there is enough commercial activity to support them, and pay-as-you-go battery services in more dispersed, lower-income areas.
Where DRC Solar Growth Creates Concrete Next Moves for Developers and Funders
- Mining operators tendering for power: Use the Kamoa benchmark when evaluating bids: 30 MW of continuous baseload delivered by 233 MW of solar plus 526 MWh of storage, online 24 months after tender and 14 months after ground-breaking.
- Independent power producers: Price in the Durban–Katanga logistics burden. Kamoa required 998 truckloads over roughly 3,000km, averaging 18 days per vehicle; this corridor will determine whether new projects can replicate the 24-month timeline.
- Off-grid developers and financiers: The Mwinda Fund begins active fundraising early next year with a $500m target and commitments from the World Bank and Global Energy Alliance. Proposals should align with its instruments—grants, concessional loans, guarantees and technical assistance—rather than relying solely on low-income village tariffs.
- Equipment suppliers: DR Congo imported $249m of solar panels and $429m of batteries in the measured year, and Ember forecasts 544% installation growth in 2026. Demand is concentrated in mining-scale solar-plus-storage and off-grid mini-grid or portable-battery formats, not residential grid extensions.
Risk & Opportunity Assessment
| Commercial Risk | Medium | Solar and battery capex is substantial—$249m in panel imports and $429m in battery spending—and off-grid projects face financing constraints, although diesel price volatility and mining expansion create strong commercial demand. |
| Competitive Risk | Medium | CrossBoundary is already bidding in three other mining tenders and discussing expansion at Kamoa, while Green World Energie has won Kamoa’s second scheme; a rush to replicate the model could compress returns as more developers enter. |
| Regulatory Risk | Low | The story identifies no immediate adverse regulatory shift; the 62% electrification target and the government-backed Mwinda Fund are supportive, though broader grid policy is not described. |
| Reputation Risk | Low | No reputational controversy is presented; the Kamoa project is framed as a working success, and the main reputational element is the opportunity for developers and miners to show they can deliver power at scale. |
| Technology Disruption | High | Modular solar-plus-storage delivered 30 MW of baseload industrial power in 24 months, while Inga 3 remains eight to ten years away; Ember projects 544% installation growth and new capacity equal to 63% of existing grid generation in 2026. |
| Commercial Opportunity | High | Mining demand, a $500m government-backed fund, and entry by WeLight, Husk and MOPO create multiple revenue pools in a country with roughly 80 million unelectrified people and population growth of about 4 million a year. |
Comments 0