In 2022, Cape Verde relied on fossil fuels for almost three-quarters of its electricity consumption: 72%. Low-carbon sources supplied the remaining 28%, with wind and solar each contributing 14%. Clean electricity therefore already provides more than a quarter of the total, but expanding it further would help reduce reliance on fossil fuels and their contributions to climate change and air pollution.

Is Electricity Growing in Cape Verde?

Electricity consumption per person is growing beyond earlier records. In 2022, it reached 962 kWh per person, about 10% above the previous record of 878 kWh in 2016—an increase of 84 kWh per person. Low-carbon electricity generation also reached a new high of 269 kWh per person, roughly 53% above its 2013 record of 176 kWh. The reported increase is about 94 kWh per person, allowing for rounding. This strong clean-electricity growth is encouraging, although sustained expansion will be needed to support future electrification and new electricity demand.

Suggestions

Cape Verde should build on its existing wind and solar generation by expanding both, alongside storage and grid improvements that help deliver more clean electricity across its islands. Ireland, an island country generating 34% of its electricity from wind, offers a relevant example, while Denmark demonstrates that wind can supply well over half. For solar, Cape Verde could learn from sunny regions such as Chile, where solar supplies 24%, and the US state of Nevada, where it supplies about a third. Nuclear should also be considered in long-term electricity planning, including an assessment of appropriately sized options: France generates about two-thirds of its electricity from nuclear, demonstrating its potential to provide a strong foundation of low-carbon electricity.

History

The historical data show little recorded change in wind generation during the listed years of the 2000s and again in the early 2010s and from 2017 through 2021. Solar also registered no change at the reported precision in 2011 and 2012. These zero entries describe annual changes, not an absence of generation, and may conceal smaller movements because of rounding. The clearest expansion came in 2022, when solar generation increased by 0.1 TWh, or about 100 million kWh. That is a welcome step forward after the limited changes visible in the earlier records, and a strong reason to maintain momentum in clean-electricity development.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade