Daniel Kablan Duncan, the prime minister of Cote dIvoire, and Zhang Guoqing, Chinese ambassador to Cote dIvoire, have signed a loan agreement for the construction of a hydroelectric dam in the countrys Soubré region
Through Export-Import Bank, China will provide Cote d'Ivoire with a loan of approximately US$500mn for the project, which is expected to cost a total of US$600mn.
Kablan Duncan said, "The project will be funded up to 85 per cent by China and the remaining 15 per cent will be mobilised by Cote d'Ivoire."
With the capacity to generate 270 MW, the Soubré hydroelectric dam, construction of which is scheduled to begin in February 2013, will be Cote d'Ivoire's biggest electricity generating plant.
Urging all stakeholders to ensure that the project is completed on time, Guoqing noted that the loan from China was the largest to be awarded to Cote d'Ivoire over the last 30 years.
Following a recent meeting with Alassane Ouattara, the president of Cote d'Ivoire, Kablan Duncan also revealed that the government intends to construct a series of dams to reinforce the country’s energy generation capacity.
