Construction works on the 57MW Western Area Power Generation Project located in the Kissy Dock area, approximately 4km east of the centre of Freetown, in Sierra Leone has officially began.
His Excellency, Dr Ernest Bai Koroma, The President of the Republic of Sierra Leone, graced the ground-breaking ceremony which was at the future power plant site.
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Globeleq, Africa’s independent power company, will develop and oversee the construction and operations of the Western Area Power Generation Project. It will work alongside CDC, the UK’s development finance institution, and TCQ Power. They have been developing and financing the project
Project partners
Wärtsilä, the, engineering, procurement and construction contractor will design and build the plant. Once complete it will provide full operations and maintenance services to the plant for the next 15 years.
BB Energy, an independent energy trading company, will provide HFO under a 15-year fuel supply agreement and electricity will be sold under a 20-year power purchase agreement with EDSA, the Sierra Leone state owned utility, and the Government of Sierra Leone.
Financial support
World Bank Group will finance the project with additional support from the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), the World Bank’s International Development Agency (IDA) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which acted as the lead organizer.
According to Sameh Shenouda, CDC’s Director and Head of Infrastructure, the ground-breaking of the Western Area Power Generation Project is an important step in increasing Sierra Leone’s electricity generation potential.
Furthermore, CDC has an important and growing role in supporting economic development in Sierra Leone. Support for the project will increase the country’s base-load capacity by more than 50%.
Karim Nasser, CEO, TCQ Power further explained that TCQ has been working on the project since 2012. “We are extremely proud to reach this critical milestone together with our partners. Furthermore, the power station is a representation of a monumental step forward for the country and clearly demonstrates the government’s ability to draw private investment into complex infrastructure projects,” added.
