Gabon receives first disbursement for Kinguélé Aval hydroelectric dam

Gabon has announced it has received the first disbursement that will cater for development of the for Kinguélé Aval hydroelectric dam.

The Kinguélé Aval hydroelectric project is located on the Mbéi River, 90 km from Libreville, the capital of Gabon. It is being developed under a public-private partnership (PPP) by Asonha Energie.

The first disbursement is a sum of US $134M. The African Development Bank (AfDB), Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund (EAIF) of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). Provided the financing.

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Kinguélé Aval hydroelectric dam

The hydroelectric dam will have an installed capacity of 35 MW. The estimated annual production capacity is 205 GWh, equivalent to 13% of the electricity consumed in Libreville. The project aims to replace existing thermal capacity and reduce CO2 emissions by over 150,000 tonnes per year.

Sinohydro, a Chinese contractor, is responsible for the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) of the project while assistance in the construction is provided by French companies Artelia and Électricité de France (EDF).

Asonha Energie, the company developing the project, is a special-purpose company. It is 60% owned by the French investment company Merdiam and 40% by Gabon Power Company (GPC), a subsidiary of the Gabonese Strategic Investment Fund (FGIS).

The electricity produced by the hydroelectric plant will be sold to the Gabonese Water and Energy company (SEEG) under a 30-year agreement.  The whole project is estimated to cost nearly US $194M.