The Democratic Republic of Congo is promoting its vast Inga hydroelectric site as a potential global hub for AI data centers. With a staggering 44-gigawatt capacity—nearly twice that of China’s Three Gorges Dam—the Inga site could supply cheap, renewable energy and abundant water for cooling. Congo’s government hopes partnerships with data center operators will unlock the site’s untapped potential, especially as tech giants like OpenAI and Google pursue multi-gigawatt projects to fuel advanced artificial intelligence. Backed by a $1 billion World Bank commitment, the $20 billion Inga III phase (the third of eight planned dams) is gaining traction amid Congo’s energy shortage. The Congolese government is also drafting a special “Inga Law” to attract private investment, arguing that the combination of green power, abundant cooling water, and existing fiber-optic infrastructure makes it an unrivaled location for the next generation of computing.
Bloomberg
