Zambia: Renewables Readiness Assessment 2013

Section 1 of this report provides background on Zambia country and the renewables readiness assessment (RRA) methodology and process, and the RRA process in Zambia. Section 2 presents both the energy and renewable energy context in the region, an overview of the energy sector in Zambia, challenges facing the energy sector and an overview of renewable energy potential and use. This section also provides a detailed discussion of the electricity sector. Section 3 explores Zambia’s energy sector institutions, the policy and regulatory framework as well as the conditions for financing and investment in the country. Section 4 presents the emergent issues with respect to solar/wind electricity (on-grid), a range of decentralised (off-grid) applications, and the biomass sector. Opportunities and constraints that affect the scaling up of the deployment of these technologies are discussed along with the findings from the RRA process. Section 5 presents the recommended actions necessary for scaling up renewable energy systems in Zambia. Finally, the detailed account of the recommended actions from the RRA can be found in an annex.