Country and Regional Projects in Africa

NREL collaborates with international governments, industry, and research institutions in Africa to accelerate innovation, build capacity, and expand opportunities for economic and energy system development. This work advances American energy leadership.

In addition to the country projects below, NREL supports several regional programs that foster cross-country technical collaboration on minigrids, energy modeling, isolated power systems for crop production and processing, and energy investment mobilization. These activities engage practitioners from more than 23 African countries.

Chad

NREL worked with partners in Chad to address power shortages in N'Djamena through resilient energy planning. Using NREL's open-source Engage tool, we developed a least-cost capacity expansion model, now available in French and online, to assist the Government of Chad in evaluating least-cost power generation options and support informed decision-making for a more reliable power system, enhancing energy affordability and resilience.

Egypt

NREL, in collaboration with other U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories, supported Egypt in establishing an in-house energy modeling unit, evaluated options to improve power system reliability, and enhanced regional knowledge exchange and peer-learning programs. Through these efforts, NREL helped bolster Egypt's analysis capabilities and accelerate the deployment of advanced energy solutions.

Ghana

NREL partnered with the Government of Ghana and other energy institutions to implement strategies for planning and operating an affordable, reliable, and secure power system that can meet increasing demand. Specific activities included analysis and modeling support of large-scale storage and hybrid systems, grid code assessments, and capacity building to understand grid impacts of distributed generation deployment.

Kenya

To increase access to secure and affordable energy, NREL is supporting the Government of Kenya in developing its integrated resource plan. The plan will evaluate least-energy generation options—including natural gas, nuclear, geothermal, and other technologies—to meet Kenya's growing energy demand. NREL also supports pilot efforts in Kenya to overcome barriers to private capital flow and mobilize investments in energy sector development priorities.

Malawi

Consistent with its mission to bolster critical supply chains and strengthen energy systems reliability, NREL is working with Malawi's national utility, Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi, to deploy and operate a 20-MW battery energy storage pilot project outside of the capital of Lilongwe. The project is the first of its kind for both Malawi and the region and will allow Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi to address frequency and voltage variations and enhance overall power system reliability.

NREL is also building on its battery energy storage work in Malawi and Nigeria to provide a platform for in-depth training and technical collaboration to support battery energy storage scale-up and replication across the region, thereby supporting energy system resilience and reliability.

Morocco

NREL is teaming with Morocco to support innovative grid integration studies, capacity building, and evaluation of pathways and policies for achieving its energy goals.

Nigeria

NREL and other national laboratory partners are working with Nigerian utilities, oil and gas operators, and government agencies to increase affordability and reliability of the country's energy system. These activities include trainings and assessments for methane monitoring, capture, and commercialization technologies and approaches; piloting distributed energy resource projects with local utilities to reduce costs and enhance system reliability; and providing in-depth training on battery energy storage solution planning, procurement, and integration.

South Africa

NREL is working with Eskom, South Africa's power system operator, and the South African government to improve advanced energy integration and infrastructure. Efforts include modeling electricity investment pathways, assessing transmission buildout impacts, and supporting municipalities with resource planning and grid operations.

Through the Global Power System Transformation Consortium, NREL is addressing power system inertia and contingency planning with Eskom. NREL is also fostering knowledge exchange through on-campus study tours and technical conferences.

NREL also collaborated with the Southern African Power Pool on regulatory reforms to enhance regional energy accessibility and reliability.

Tanzania

NREL advises Tanzania on minigrid standards and business models and develops curricula for off-grid solar PV installer training. We also assist with integrating all energy technologies onto the nation's grid through technical analysis, power system modeling tools, and capacity building for forecasting, system operations, and flexibility assessments.

Tunisia

NREL and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory are working with Tunisia on using open-source tools to evaluate the grid impacts of distributed energy resources, such as battery storage and electric vehicles. Efforts also include advancing energy efficiency through updated air conditioner standards, assessing building energy performance, and developing financing solutions for energy retrofits.