Huila-Cunene Interconnection Project (WB-P512716)

Regions
  • Africa
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • Angola
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Lubango, Cahama, Ondjiva, Xangongo
Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.
Financial Institutions
  • World Bank (WB)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Active
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
A
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Nov 21, 2025
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
Government of Angola
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Energy
  • Infrastructure
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Grant, Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 350.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Loan Amount (USD)
$ 334.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Grant Amount (USD)
$ 16.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 470.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Bank Documents
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ WB website

Updated in EWS Oct 13, 2026

Disclosed by Bank Sep 19, 2025

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

According to the World Bank, the proposed project aims finance Angola's investment obligations towards the Angola-Namibia (ANNA) interconnection project which will create the transmission capacity needed in Angola to integrate with SAPP. It is part of Phase 2 of the Regional Energy Transmission, Trade and Decarbonization Project multiphase programmatic approach (RETRADE MPA).

The ANNA transmission project consists of approximately 366 km of 400 kV transmission line, of which 321 km is in Angola. The estimated costs for the proposed project in Angola is US$470 million, with an IBRD contribution of US$350 million and private sector financing of US$115 million.

Two transmission lines will be financed under the proposed project through a mix of public and private financing, namely:

  • the Lubango-Cahama-Namibian Border (Cunene) (segments A-B-C in Figure 1); and
  • the Cahama-Ondjiva (segment B-D), with a potential substation in Xangongo.

The segments A-B-D will be financed through a public ownership model and will extend hydro-dominated electricity to the isolated southern provinces that still use diesel generators. This will reduce the cost of electricity, reduce emissions, and improve the reliability of the service. It will also support government programs to increase access to electricity and facilitate the deployment of solar PV plants in an area with abundant solar resources and the expansion of industries.

Segment B-C will be developed under a privately financed transmission (PFT) model to integrate Angola into SAPP, facilitating the export of unused surplus electricity and generating revenue for the power sector.

In Namibia, the scope of works includes the 45km line from the border to the existing Kunene substation. NamPower, the vertically integrated utility in Namibia, intends financing its part of the transmission line through its own financial resources.

The implementing agency will be Rede Nacional de Transporte de Electricidade.

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.
Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

As stated on the company's website (translated with DeepL.com), Rede Nacional de Transporte de Electricidade is responsible for connecting various sources of electricity generation to consumers, ensuring a continuous and reliable supply of energy to both urban centers and rural areas.

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - Rede Nacional de Transporte de Electricidade de Angola (RNT-EP) Contractor Energy

Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

World Bank Team Leaders:

Samuel Kwesi Ewuah Oguah - Senior Energy Specialist
Email: soguah@worldbank.org 

Leonardo Kilele Tshama - Energy Specialist
Email: ltshama@worldbank.org 

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

To submit an information request for project information, you will have to create an account to access the Access to Information request form. You can learn more about this process at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/access-to-information/request-submission

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF THE WORLD BANK

The World Bank Inspection Panel is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by a World Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Inspection Panel, they may investigate to assess whether the World Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can contact the Inspection Panel or submit a complaint by emailing ipanel@worldbank.org. Information on how to file a complaint and a complaint request form are available at: https://www.inspectionpanel.org/how-to-file-complaint

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How it works