IRENA Regional Model Analysis & Planning Support Programme: Central Africa
In partnership with the Central Africa Power Pool (CAPP), IRENA has launched a six-month regional training on energy model analysis and planning for CAPP countries.
In Central Africa, IRENA has used its in-house System Planning Test (SPLAT) capacity expansion model to provide inputs into the recent Regional Renewable Energy Roadmap of the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS). That roadmap aims to identify key activities to address energy transformation in ECCAS, and includes recommendations to: Strengthen capacity for long-term energy planning processes and the tools to link the assessment of renewable potential to actual development; and prepare national and regional power sector or energy master plans that account for an increased share of variable renewables.
In partnership with the CAPP, IRENA followed through on those recommendations by implementing a Regional Africa Modelling Analysis & Planning Support Programme for Central Africa in 2020-21. The Programme delivered practical training and insights to key staff of national energy institutions in the region on how to develop national generation capacity expansion scenarios to inform the energy planning process. The ultimate goal was to enhance participating countries’ energy planning capacity, enabling them to develop robust forward-looking energy sector objectives, plans and climate goals. The Programme was firmly based on the interest of various Central African IRENA Member States in strengthening energy planning capacity, as well as engagement of IRENA with the CAPP since 2013 around the need to fill planning gaps in the region.
Over the course of 2021, about 50 technical planning experts from seven CAPP member states participated in the training programme, which included an e-learning course for the capacity expansion software MESSAGE (implemented with the support of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)), two full-week remote training workshops on long-term planning with renewables and the IRENA SPLAT-MESSAGE modelling framework, and on-request tutoring support for modelling and preparation of national summary reports.
A final presentation session was held to present the work that has been done to high-level representatives from regional and international organisations involved in energy planning in the region.
The agenda and materials from the two training workshops and final presentation session can be found at the links below: