UAE-based PV developer to build 50 MW of solar in Togo

With just one tweet, Marc D. Ably-Bidamon, Togo's Minister of Mines and Energy, kicked off the development of the country's second major PV project:

J'ai procédé ce mardi, 26 Nov. à la signature de la convention de Concession pour la conception, le financement, la construction, la mise en service…de la centrale solaire photovoltaïque de 50MWc de Blitta par AMEA POWER. Ce projet permettra de réduire la dépendance énergétique pic.twitter.com/yDvARI6i7O

— Marc D. Ably-Bidamon (@AblyMarc) November 26, 2019

Amea Togo Solar – a subsidiary of Amea Power, a global renewables developer based in the United Arab Emirates – will build the XOF 20 billion ($33.5 million) solar array in Blitta prefecture, central Togo. The Abu Dhabi Development Fund will provide some of the financing for the project, which will sell electricity to Togo Electric Power Co. (CEET) under a long-term PPA.

“The construction of this solar power plant, which will eventually have a capacity of 50 MW, is part of the solar program of the national electrification strategy through which the government intends to build four plants in the country,” the Togolese government said.

In August, the Togolese government approved plans to build the country's first PV project, a 30 MW solar array, just two weeks after joining the World Bank's Scaling Solar program. And under a recently signed memorandum of understanding with International Finance Corp., the local authorities plan to develop an additional 90 MW of solar capacity.

Upon completion, the four facilities will be the first large-scale solar installations in a country that has only seen rural electrification projects thus far.