Power
UK Firm Signs Deal to Build 200-MW Solar Project in Niger
The location in Niger where the Parc Eolien de Tarka wind project is being developed.
Photo Courtesy Savannha Energy
British independent energy firm Savannah Energy Plc has, through its West Africa-based subsidiary Savannah Energy Niger Solar Ltd., been granted the right to construct two solar photovoltaic power plants in Niger with a combined capacity of 200 MW, boosting the West African country’s efforts to achieve universal electricity access by 2035.
Savannah signed the agreement with Niger’s Ministry of Petroleum, Energy and Renewable Energies, paving the way for the initial phase of the construction of the two plants that are located within 20 km of the cities of Maradi and Zinder respectively in southern Niger. Terms of the agreement and precise projects’ value were not immediately disclosed.
An additional 50 MW is to be developed in the second phase which would enable Niger, which has one of the lowest electrification rates in sub-Saharan Africa, to generate an additional 20% of its electricity needs while at the same time avoiding an estimated 260,000 metric tons of annual CO2 emissions.
Niger’s installed capacity is estimated at 322 MW, comprising 265 MW of natural gas, 7 MW of solar and 50 MW from other sources.
The agreement for the project, whose work is scheduled in the next 12 months, coincides with Niger’s recent reforms to its energy sector to support the country’s goal of a reliable and affordable electricity supply. The reforms include setting up a regulatory body, Autorité de Regulation du Secteur de l’Energie, with the mandate to increase transparency and fair competition among numerous energy actors.
Furthermore, the Niger government created Agence Nigérienne de Promotion de l’Electrification en milieu Rural (ANPER) to design, implement, and monitor rural electrification programs countrywide.
Niger's minister for energy recently issued an order eliminating taxes on domestic solar energy and wind power equipment to enable a larger number of households to access electricity. In addition, a new electricity regulation has been approved by the government paving the way for authorizing independent power producers to bolster development of mini grids.
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Wind Power Project Still in the Works
The deal comes slightly more than a year after both Savannah Energy and the government of Niger signed a similar agreement for the development and operation of the 250-MW Parc Edien de la Tarica wind farm project, the first ever in the country.
The project, which will have 60 turbines but whose supplier is yet to be confirmed, will supply an equivalent of 40% of Niger’s electricity requirement.
Of Niger’s 22 million people, only 13% of them have access to electricity. Out of this electricity connected population, 72% are in Niger’s urban areas.
With construction of the solar PV and wind projects, Niger is expected to take advantage of the development of the West African Power Pool, a high voltage transmission network allowing power exchange between countries in West Africa and improved grid stability.
Niger is scheduled to be connected to the pool this year through a 330 kV line, developed with multinational bank financing.
