Africa: a Future Energy Supplier for Europe? Africa as a Member of Trans-European Transfer Networks and a Partner to EU on the Field of Electricity Industry

Abstract

The EU member states rank among the most developed countries in the world which also makes them signifi cant electricity consumers. Electricity consumption in the EU member states has been increasing steadily over several decades and this tendency should be expected to continue in the future Majority of the EU member states are not self -suffi cient as to electricity production and have to cover greater or smaller part of their consumption by import from third countries. The present text deals with the possibilities of electric energy import to the EU countries from Africa. Thinking of importing electric energy from Africa, it is vital 1) to identify the source countries capable of producing suffi cient volumes of electric energy and eligible to cooperation, and 2) to consider possible ways and means of the transfer of electric energy to European countries, i.e. to analyse the current state of transfer networks between European countries and North and Central African countries. The fi rst part of the present text focuses on determining which countries in the North and Central Africa come into question as potential energy suppliers for the EU, the second part deals with the possibilities of electric energy transport from the North and Central Africa to Europe.