Independent power producer Africa REN has commissioned a solar-plus-storage project in Senegal. The Walo Storage project is the first solar installation in West Africa to include energy storage dedicated to frequency regulation.
The project has a solar capacity of 16 MW alongside 10 MW/20 MWh of battery energy storage, according to details on Africa REN’s website. It is located in Bokhol, Dagana department, in northern Senegal. National utility Senelec operates the grid to which the project is connected and has entered into a 20-year take-or-pay public-private partnership (PPP) contract.
The installation features monocrystalline solar modules mounted on single-axis tracking systems paired with string inverters, alongside lithium-ion battery storage.
Africa REN said in a statement that the Walo Storage project will help regulate frequency and secure electricity supply for millions of Senegalese people. CEO Gilles Parmentier noted that the project is a milestone in the company’s plan to build €500 million ($584.3 million) of sustainable assets by the end of the decade.
Project costs totaled €40 million, including financial backing from Dutch development bank FMO and Metier Sustainable Capital International Fund II LLP. FMO and the Emerging Africa & Asia Infrastructure Fund provided additional debt financing.
In November 2024 Madagascar-based Axian Energy said it had secured €84 million for a 60 MW/72 MWh solar-plus-storage project in southern Senegal. Shortly after that, Germany’s Juwi Renewable Energies announced plans to build a 20 MW solar project with 11 MWh of accompanying battery storage in western part of the country.
Senegal has set a target of generating 40% of its electricity from renewables by 2030. The country deployed 273 MW of solar by the end of 2024, up from 231 MW in 2023, according to figures from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
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