HYDRO-LINK and Mitrelli launch $1.5 B project
US-backed 1,150 km transmission line to connect Angola and DRC, supporting mineral exports, clean energy, and local job creation
Image for illustrative purposes
Africa: New York-based energy investor HYDRO-LINK and Swiss infrastructure firm Mitrelli Group have announced a joint $1.5 N investment to build a 1,150-km electricity transmission line linking Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The cross-border project, revealed at the US-Africa Business Summit in Luanda, aims to improve power access for DRC’s critical mineral sector while channeling surplus hydropower from Angola.
The initiative addresses severe power shortages in the DRC, which routinely disrupt mining and processing of strategic resources like rare earth elements. The new line will supply the Copperbelt region with reliable electricity, fostering economic development and regional energy integration.
Scheduled for completion by 2029, the project supports both African growth and US strategic interests. It will create thousands of construction jobs, serve industrial and public power needs, and place major equipment orders with manufacturers in multiple US states.
Mitrelli will provide turnkey project execution, drawing on decades of experience in Angola. US engineering firm Sargent & Lundy will act as Owner’s Engineer.
HYDRO-LINK Chairman Paul Hinks emphasised the project’s role in boosting mineral output by overcoming grid unreliability. Mitrelli Group President Haim Taib highlighted the community and development benefits for people living along the transmission route.
The project sets a model for future private-sector-led infrastructure development in Africa.
Source: africa.com
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