Mapping Africa’s energy wealth and 560 million who remain without power

Africa holds billions of barrels of oil, trillions of cubic metres of state and produces astir of the world’s cobalt and manganese for electrical car batteries.

This week, vigor ministers, investors and lipid executives are gathering successful Cape Town for African Energy Week, which runs until October 16. The league focuses connected concern successful lipid and gas, vigor concern and ending vigor poverty.

In this ocular explainer, Al Jazeera maps wherever Africa’s oil, state and captious minerals are found, however its energy is generated and who inactive goes without it.

How overmuch lipid does Africa have?

Africa holds astir 125 cardinal barrels of proven crude lipid reserves, representing 7.2 percent of the planetary total. Proven reserves are lipid that has been discovered and tin beryllium extracted commercially with existing technology, but is inactive successful the ground.

Libya and Nigeria relationship for astir 70 percent of Africa’s reserves, with 48.4 cardinal and 36.9 cardinal barrels, respectively. Algeria ranks third, with 12.2 cardinal barrels. Angola follows with 7.78 cardinal barrels, portion South Sudan and Egypt clasp 3.75 cardinal and 3.3 cardinal barrels, respectively.

Nigeria was Africa’s largest lipid shaper successful 2024, accounting for astir 23 percent of the continent’s output. Algeria and Angola followed with astir 17 percent each, and unneurotic the 3 produced 56 percent of Africa’s oil. The apical 5 producers accounted for much than 80 percent. Africa arsenic a full produced 7.6 percent of the world’s crude oil, astir successful enactment with its stock of planetary reserves.

Libya, which holds Africa’s largest proven reserves, ranked lone 4th successful production. Italy’s Eni, France’s TotalEnergies and Spain’s Repsol are among the overseas companies operating successful the country, wherever governmental disputes and blockades person repeatedly disrupted output.

An lipid rig drills successful El-Sharara, Libya, connected June 5, 2004, arsenic US lipid companies negociate to instrumentality to the state pursuing the lifting of sanctions [Benjamin Lowy/Getty Images]

Where are Africa’s earthy state reserves?

Africa held astir 18 trillion cubic metres of proven earthy state reserves astatine the extremity of 2023.

Nigeria and Algeria clasp astir 58 percent of the total, followed by Mozambique with 2.84 trillion cubic metres, Egypt with 2.21 trillion and Libya with 1.51 trillion.

Algeria and Nigeria are besides among Africa’s starring state exporters, portion overmuch of Mozambique’s reserves, discovered offshore successful the 2010s, stay mostly undeveloped.

The LNG tanker LNG LOKOJA unloads Nigerian state astatine the Revithoussa terminal adjacent Athens, Greece, connected February 22, 2026, diversifying Europe’s state supplies [Nicolas Koutsokostas/NurPhoto via Getty Images]

Where bash the captious minerals travel from?

The African continent supplies a ample stock of the minerals utilized successful electrical vehicles, batteries and renewable vigor technologies.

In 2025, African countries accounted for 71.2 percent of planetary cobalt accumulation and 72.4 percent of manganese production.

Cobalt is utilized successful rechargeable batteries. Manganese is chiefly utilized to fortify steel, but it is besides utilized successful immoderate electrical conveyance batteries and successful batteries that store renewable energy.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo produces astir 70 percent of the world’s cobalt. Some of it is dug by manus by artisanal miners, and Amnesty International has documented unsafe and often deadly conditions successful immoderate of the country’s mines.

South Africa produces astir 38 percent of planetary manganese, followed by Gabon with astir 25 percent. Together with Ghana, the 3 countries relationship for 72.4 percent of planetary production.

A presumption of the Shabara artisanal cobalt-copper excavation adjacent Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of Congo, connected June 14, 2023 [Arlette Bashizi/The Washington Post via Getty Images]

Zimbabwe, Africa’s largest lithium producer, accounted for 9.6 percent of planetary accumulation successful 2025. Lithium is utilized successful rechargeable batteries that powerfulness electrical vehicles and store energy from star and wind.

Madagascar, Mozambique and Tanzania produced a combined 222,000 tonnes of earthy graphite successful 2025, oregon 11.9 percent of the planetary total. Graphite is utilized successful the anodes of astir lithium-ion batteries, the antagonistic electrodes that store and merchandise energy, arsenic good arsenic successful alloy manufacturing, lubricants and pencils.

How galore African countries nutrient energy from renewables?

Renewable vigor accounted for each energy generated successful Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo successful 2024. Uganda, Namibia and Eswatini each generated much than 96 percent from renewables, mostly hydropower.

At the different end, renewables made up little than 5 percent successful Algeria, Libya, Niger and Tunisia, which trust chiefly connected state oregon oil.

Ethiopia’s energy comes mostly from hydropower, led by the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam connected the Blue Nile, Africa’s largest hydroelectric project. The dam began generating powerfulness successful 2022 and was officially inaugurated successful September 2025.

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam connected the Blue Nile successful Benishangul-Gumuz, Ethiopia, began generating energy successful 2022 amid tensions with Egypt and Sudan [Minasse Wondimu Hailu/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images]

Where bash radical person entree to electricity?

In 2024, six African countries reported cosmopolitan energy access: Algeria, Egypt, Mauritius, Morocco, Seychelles and Tunisia. Together, they are location to astir 215 cardinal people, oregon astir 14 percent of Africa’s population.

Elsewhere, entree varies widely. In South Sudan, lone 5.4 percent of radical had electricity. The fig was 15.6 percent successful Malawi and 22.5 percent successful the Democratic Republic of the Congo, adjacent though the DRC generates each its powerfulness from renewables.

Nigeria, Africa’s astir populous country, had an entree complaint of 62.5 percent, leaving astir 85 cardinal radical without electricity, the largest fig of immoderate state successful the world.

In agrarian areas, wherever entree is acold little than successful cities, galore families inactive trust connected kerosene lamps, candles oregon torches to airy their homes aft dark.

Rural students successful Ghana survey by kerosene lantern wherever constricted energy entree makes evening survey hard [File: Taylor Weidman/LightRocket via Getty Images]

Africa has immense vigor resources, from lipid and earthy state to the minerals powering the planetary vigor transition. Yet much than 560 cardinal radical successful sub-Saharan Africa deficiency entree to electricity, accounting for astir 86 percent of the planetary total, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).