The race is on for the development, financing and construction of the Gorou Banda solar power plant. A total of six independent power producers (IPPs) have been selected by the Niger government in the first phase of the tender for this project. And not the least.
Among these IPPs is Scatec Solar, a Norwegian group that is very active in the renewable energy market in Africa, with operational solar power plants in Egypt and South Africa. The group led by Raymond Carlsen is competing with two Egyptian companies, Elsewedy Electric and Infinity Power Holding. The French companies GreenYellow (a subsidiary of the Casino Group) and Voltalia are also in the running for the construction of the Guru Banda solar power plant. The same is true for the IPP Nareva Holding, owned by the Moroccan private equity fund Al Mada.
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The 50 MWp solar photovoltaic power plant will be built about ten km from the Nigerien capital Niamey. This project is being carried out under the Scaling Solar program. Implemented by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the subsidiary of the World Bank Group in charge of private sector financing, this initiative aims to encourage private companies to invest in solar energy, in order to supply energy to the national electricity network of the partner country, and to ensure the rapid execution (two years at the most) of the projects, thanks in particular to public-private partnerships (PPPs).
The future solar power plant in Gorou Banda will increase Niger’s installed capacity and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. According to Power Afrique, this West African country produces 85% of its electricity from gas-fired plants, and only 2% from solar, with an installed capacity of 322 MW.
Jean Marie Takouleu