Legal Alerts

In 2023, Gabon adopted a new Electricity Law, replacing the previous framework governing both electricity and drinking water established by Law No. 24/2016. Thus, the new Law No. 012/2023 introduces a more detailed framework, specific to the electricity sector, while drinking water is now governed by separate legislation adopted in the same year. But how does the new regulation govern the delegation of activities relating to the public electricity service sector? Did it fundamentally alter the organization of the public service of electricity?

The 2023 Reform and the Continued Liberalization of the Electricity Sector

Law No. 012/2023 continues the liberalization of the electricity sector that had been underway for several years and has continued through the reforms announced by the Gabonese government in October 2025.

Section 36 of Law No. 012/2023 now explicitly provides that the transmission, production, distribution and commercialization of electricity are fully liberalized. This reform consolidates a gradual opening of the sector aiming at breaking the State monopoly established under the previous regulatory framework.

However, private participation was not entirely new: Law No. 24/2016 already allowed the State to delegate electricity activities to private entities under public service delegation mechanisms. Its original version also included competitive bidding rules for awarding delegation contracts, although these were softened by a 2021 ordinance that removed the explicit reference to competition, suggesting a shift toward more flexible or negotiated procedures.

Now, under Section 20 of the Electricity Law, the public service of electricity may be carried out in two main forms:

• public service delegation;
• direct investment agreement.

Public service delegation regime

Under Section 20 of the Electricity Law, the public service delegation may take various forms. The State can particularly delegate by way of concession, but also of lease contract ("affermage"), management contract ("gérance"), incentive-based management contract ("régie intéréssée"), all of them needing to be subject of an agreement ("convention") subject to a specific regime, and public-private partnership (PPP). The public service delegation regime is only open to Gabonese legal entities.

For their part, the PPPs benefit from a specific regulation under Ordinance No. 009/PR/2016 on Public-Private Partnership. Ordinance No. 009/PR/2016 specifies the different types of PPP and the applicable tender procedures and has been completed by various implementing decrees. The selection process for the conclusion of the other type of public service delegation via an agreement is not detailed and is simply referred to the applicable legislation.

As Law No. 012/2023 does not mention any mandatory competition, the attribution of the other types of public service delegation is not necessarily subject to the Gabonese Public Procurement Code. Consequently, no specific legislation governs the attribution procedure for public service delegation other than the PPP. This apparent lack of detailed award procedures reflects the longstanding policy of liberalizing the electricity sector in Gabon, which favors direct negotiations between the State and private stakeholders.

Section 62 of the Law only provides that the performance of activities related to electricity under the regime of the agreement is subject to the issuance of a license by the Minister in charge of Energy. It is very likely that Law No. 012/2023 will be completed by implementing decrees providing for a light regulatory framework aimed at standardizing the negotiation procedure between the State and private entities.

Direct investment agreement regime

The regime of the direct investment agreement differs from the regime of the public service delegation in various ways. First, Section 75 of Law No. 012/2023 provides that the direct investment agreement only applies to activities of production and transmission of electricity.

Second, the direct investment agreement is open to both Gabonese and foreign entities according to Section 21 of Law No. 012/2023 which constitutes a major difference from the public service delegation regime.

Finally, the conclusion of a direct investment agreement is not subject to the same specific rules applying to the agreement regime, relating especially to the form of the agreement and to the elements the State must consider in the selection of the public service operator.

Still, the direct investment agreement award procedure is not subject to more regulation than the agreement regime. As with the agreement regime, the performance of a public service activity under the direct investment agreement regime is subject to the issuance of a license by the Minister in charge of Energy. But the award procedure is not further detailed under Law No. 012/2023.

This absence of detail is again likely to be a way for the Gabonese government to prioritize direct negotiations between the State and private entities. The direct investment agreement thus provides for a more flexible tool, to achieve that objective.