Engie and investment partner Meridiam have been selected by Senegal’s Electricity Sector Regulation Commission (CRSE) as preferred bidder in a tender launched in October 2017 to build two solar photovoltaic projects totalling 60MW
These two projects are in line with Senegal’s Scaling Solar initiative, which is conducted jointly by the Senegalese authorities and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
The solar photovoltaic projects are located in Kahone, in the Kaolack region, and in Touba-Kaël, in the Diourbel region.
Engie and Meridiam will hold a 40 per cent shareholding in the project company. Fonsis, the Senegalese sovereign fund, will hold 20 per cent equity stake in the project.
Commenting on the solar project, Yoven Moorooven, CEO of Engie Africa, said, “Our focus will now be on finalising the projects to deliver the most competitive solar photovoltaic plants, to serve the country’s ambition of developing universal electricity access in a sustainable manner.”
Mathieu Peller, chief operating officer of Meridiam Africa, noted, “This particular project will have a high developmental impact by expanding Senegal's capacity to generate clean energy at a very competitive price. Increasing power generation is critical for the government's objective to raise Senegal to the level of an emerging market by 2035. The project aligns with the UN's Sustainable Development Goal Seven, which calls for increasing the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.”
In Senegal, Engie is currently operating Senergy project, a 30MW solar photovoltaic plant in the town of Santhiou Mekhé and in Ten Merina, a 29.5MW solar photovoltaic plant in the region of Thiès, near Dakar. In 2017, Engie signed a partnership with ANER, Senegal’s National Renewable Energy Agency, which focuses on accelerating the development of renewable energy in the country.
The group is also implementing solar energy solutions for rural households in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire and Cameroon. Engie has also been selected for the Dakar TER project in partnership with Thales for the design and production of infrastructure and systems, with a contract amounting to US$278.29mn.
