Prioritising Energy Security in Southern Africa

The paper identifies national-level energy planning as a barrier to energy access in Africa and proposes regional integration to expand market size and diversify energy sources. It specifically critiques the Southern Africa Power Pool (SAPP) for its 'loose pool' structure and suggests creating a regional energy regulator and a regional bourse to increase transparency, reduce risk, and engage the private sector.

• Energy access in Africa is severely limited, with only 23% of the population having electricity despite the continent's significant oil, gas, and hydropower potential. This failure is attributed to energy planning being limited to the nation state, which prevents the diversification of energy sources across borders and creates markets too small to attract necessary investment finance.
• Regional energy integration can mobilize investment and reduce costs; for instance, the World Bank estimates that the optimal operation of the Southern Africa Power Pool (SAPP) could save the region up to US$1.6 billion over ten years.
• The Southern Africa Power Pool (SAPP) currently operates as a 'loose pool' where national utilities retain authority over generation and transmission, and member countries use different legal frameworks. This creates a conflict of interest because SAPP acts as both a quasi-regulator and a market player.
• To improve integration, the document proposes the creation of a regional energy regulator to harmonize policies and a regional bourse for trading energy products. A regional bourse would reduce information asymmetry, lower counterparty risk, and shift energy pricing to be based on African supply and demand fundamentals rather than overseas factors.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2009). Prioritising Energy Security in Southern Africa. https://saiia.org.za/research/prioritising-energy-security-in-southern-africa/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. Prioritising Energy Security in Southern Africa. 2009. https://saiia.org.za/research/prioritising-energy-security-in-southern-africa/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=Prioritising Energy Security in Southern Africa |date=1 March 2009 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/prioritising-energy-security-in-southern-africa/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2009prioritising, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{Prioritising Energy Security in Southern Africa}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2009}, month = mar, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/prioritising-energy-security-in-southern-africa/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }