INFRASTRUCTURE
Katende Hydropower Project Gains Momentum With $15 Million
Equipment for the Katende hydropower project has reached Mwene-Ditu as Kasaï-Central’s governor announces a $15 million release for the works.
August 6, 2026 at 3:25:47 PM
August 6, 2026 at 3:34:08 PM
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AI-enhanced image based on the original photo of the Katende Hydropower Project
The Katende hydroelectric project has entered a new phase of visible momentum after construction equipment arrived by rail in Mwene-Ditu for onward transport to the project area and Kasaï-Central Governor Joseph-Moïse Kambulu Nkonko announced the release of $15 million to companies executing the works.
The two developments strengthen the government-led effort to advance one of the Grand Kasaï region’s most important energy projects.
The equipment arrived in Mwene-Ditu during the night of August 4–5, 2026. It is expected to continue toward Tshimbulu, in the territory of Dibaya, before reaching the Katende project site. Local reporting indicates that part of the equipment is intended to support the installation of the first pylons for the electricity-transmission line toward Kananga.
Separately, Governor Kambulu announced that $15 million expected for Katende had been disbursed and transferred to the companies working on the project, according to 7sur7.
Together, the financing announcement and movement of equipment provide two practical signs of progress: resources for the companies and machinery moving closer to the construction zone.
Latest Development at a Glance
From National Relaunch to Visible Movement on the Ground
The latest development builds on the national government’s formal relaunch of the Grand Katende project in May 2025.
At that stage, the Ministries of Finance and Hydraulic Resources and Electricity presented a renewed technical and financing framework covering the dam, transmission lines, implementation phases and the mobilisation of project partners.
The Ministry of Finance said the process of transporting equipment and rehabilitating the site had begun with state financing. The government placed the project under a steering framework co-chaired by the two ministries, with the Cellule d’Exécution des Financements en faveur des États Fragiles serving as the implementation agency and the public entity Gestion des Centrales de Katende et Kakobola providing technical supervision with experts.
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