With only 15% of the country connected to the grid, Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in terms of electricity coverage. Its current electricity generation is 417 megawatts of electricity, while it aims to “build at least 1,100 kilometres of lines over the next five years. That will help the island nation to increase the country’s electrification rate from 15% to 50%”.
Madagascar is endowed with an abundance of natural resources, and has the potential to generate 7,800 megawatts (MW) of electric power from hydropower sources. But only 2 percent is currently utilized. It generates only 356 MW (hydro) and 150 MW (thermal) of installed generation capacity to cater to a population of more than 24 million people. The average solar energy potential is estimated 2, 000KW/m2 /year, with additional potential for wind energy across multiple regions. Hydro electric is the main source of energy followed by electricity generation using diesel sets. Once the electricity generation picks up, the nation thinks that it can better exploit its natural resources by setting up processing centers to value add them.
