Power Africa has supported the development of electricity generation projects in Niger. In addition, various firms have received U.S. Embassy support to move transactions forward. The page below gives an overview of the energy sector in Niger, explains Power Africa's involvement in the country.

NIGER ENERGY SECTOR OVERVIEW

Population: 22.44 million | GDP (1): $9.29 billion

To reach its goal of universal electricity access by 2035, Niger’s government is working to expand its electricity supply and encourage investment in the energy sector. Niger has taken some critical steps to improve energy markets by creating a regulatory body, Autorité de Regulation du Secteur de l’Energie (ARSE), to increase transparency and fair competition among numerous energy actors. The Government also created Agence Nigérienne de Promotion de l’Electrification en milieu Rural (ANPER), which is mandated to design, implement, and monitor rural electrification programs throughout the country. Other reforms include a joint Ministerial order that eliminates taxes on domestic solar energy production kits and wind generation equipment to enable a larger number of households to access electricity, a new electricity act that will authorize the establishment of independent power producers (IPPs), and ongoing work with consultants and the African Legal Support Facility to bolster the legal and regulatory framework for mini-grids. Issues with technical capacity and utility creditworthiness persist.

POWER AFRICA SUCCESS STORIES IN NIGER

A Blueprint for Rural Electrification: Building a Market for Mini-Grids in Niger

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Niger has one of the lowest electrification rates in sub-Saharan Africa. Only one in seven Nigeriens have access to modern electricity services, and just four percent of rural residents have access through the national utility. Without power, there is no viable path for economic growth and development, and few prospects for people living below the poverty line.

But Niger has a plan. The Nigerien Agency for the Promotion of Rural Electrification (ANPER) developed ambitious targets to bring clean energy to rural households, thus paving the path for sustainable development. The Government of Niger created ANPER to design, implement, and monitor country-wide rural energy efforts to help Niger achieve universal rural electrification by 2035. ANPER realized that solar mini-grids offer a cost-effective, fast pathway to delivering first-time energy access to 1,000 rural villages. ANPER also knew that the country needed a robust feasibility study to attract international mini-grid developers and private sector investment.

In January 2019, with support from USAID and Power Africa, ANPER launched a nationwide feasibility study on mini-grid development, bringing Niger one step closer to its universal energy access goal.

Power Africa formed a consortium of partners, led by the U.S. small business ECODIT LLC, to join forces with ANPER in producing the Niger Mini-Grid Feasibility Study. This first-of-its-kind feasibility study proposes aligning telecommunications towers with solar mini-grids, thus improving the economics of rural electrification and attracting energy investors and developers to Niger. 

READ MORE about this feasibility study on our blog

Sources

1. https://data.worldbank.org/country/niger 
2. https://www.africa-energy.com/database/datatool
3. https://www.iea.org/reports/sdg7-data-and-projections/access-to-electricity