Southern African Power Pool

The Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) is a cooperation of the national electricity companies in Southern Africa under the auspices of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). The members of SAPP have created a common power grid between their countries and a common market for electricity in the SADC region. SAPP was founded in 1995.

The Southern African Power Pool has many long-term goals it wishes to achieve. Main goals include increasing the accessibility of electricity to rural communities, better the relationships between the involved countries, create strategies that will support sustainable development priorities, and to co-ordinate the planning of electric power.

Along with industrial productivity, electricity generation can assist in the Southern African Development Community (SADC)’s mandate of poverty elimination across Southern Africa. Only 5% of rural areas in Southern Africa have access to electricity, which prevents their ability to control sanitation, clean water, and food. In 2010, SADC passed the Regional Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan, which aims to combine regional energy resources as a means of ensuring the entire SADC region has access to affordable, sustainable electricity. The plan’s goal is to within ten years reduce half the number of people in the region without access to energy, and then halving it every five years until the region has universal access.

The most recent developments to the Southern African Power Pool came between the years of 1995 and 2005, where multiple interconnections were added. In 1995, an interconnector that ran from South Africa to Zimbabwe was completed, a Mozambique-South Africa interconnector was fixed in 1997, a Mozambique-Zimbabwe interconnector was finished, and most recently two power lines connecting South Africa to Maputo were finished.

Currently being planned for future development is a Zambia-Tanzania power line, a Mozambique-Malawi power line, the fixing of the old Zambia power line, and the construction of a third Inga hydropower station by means of the Westcor Project.

Member Status

The Botswansa Power Corporation, Electricidade de Mocambique, ESKOM, Lesotho Electricity Corporation, NAMPOWER, Societe Nationale d'Electricitite, Swaziland Electricity Board, Zesco Limited, and the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority are operating members of the Power Pool. The Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi, Empresa Nacional de Electricidade, and the Tanzania Electricity Supply Company Ltd are the non-operating members of the Power Pool. The Copperbelt Energy Corporation is the only Independent Transmission Company of the Power Pool.

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