Tools · Third-party
Africa Electricity Grids Explorer
Where the power lines actually run, and where they are planned. Zoom to any country and see the high-voltage backbone next to the medium- and low-voltage network that reaches towns and villages.
Why we keep it open in a tab
The distance to the nearest medium-voltage line is one of the first things to check before designing a mini-grid or a solar-plus-storage system. If a line is a few kilometres away, the question changes from "can we build a grid here" to "who will connect it, and when". The explorer gives that first picture in seconds.
Read with care. The World Bank notes that the data is incomplete and that sources vary by country and region, so it should not be used to compare grid coverage between countries. The underlying dataset is "Africa Electricity Transmission and Distribution 2017" on ENERGYDATA.INFO. Always check locally before you plan around a line.
Next question: grid, mini-grid or standalone?
Once you know where the lines are, the Global Electrification Platform Explorer compares the least-cost option per area. It runs on the World Bank's own site, so it opens in a new tab.
Open the Global Electrification Platform ↗