Four Beninese solar plants secure €30 million
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on La Nouvelle Tribune and Bénin Web TV
Four photovoltaic plants with a combined capacity of 62 megawatt-peak will be built in Benin with €30 million in financing signed by AXIAN, the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations du Bénin, IFC and Proparco. Planned for Natitingou, Djougou, Parakou and Bohicon, they are expected to enter service in the first quarter of 2028 and supply around 383,000 people, according to La Nouvelle Tribune and Bénin Web TV. The project, whose total cost reaches €45 million, is based on concessions signed in 2022, Bénin Web TV specifies.
The IPP50 solar project involves the construction of four photovoltaic plants with a combined capacity of 62 megawatt-peak in Natitingou, Djougou, Parakou and Bohicon, Benin. Financing agreements worth €30 million have been signed by AXIAN, the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations du Bénin, IFC and Proparco, according to La Nouvelle Tribune and Bénin Web TV. The total cost is estimated at €45 million.
The plants are expected to produce around 110 gigawatt-hours of renewable electricity a year and supply approximately 383,000 people. Commercial operations are scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2028, with the electricity to be sold to the Société béninoise de production d’électricité under long-term power purchase agreements, according to the two media outlets. The project could avoid nearly 62,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions a year, according to La Nouvelle Tribune.
The financing is being jointly provided by IFC and Proparco, with IFC mobilising resources from the Clean Technology Fund. Bénin Web TV specifies that the Beninese government signed concession agreements on 4 July 2022 with the GreenYellow and Egnon Consulting consortium for the four plants. The arrangement provided for their construction, ownership, operation and subsequent transfer under the BOOT model over 20 years.
The project is part of the national energy compact, which aims to increase the share of renewable energy in the electricity mix to 30% and Benin’s electrification rate to at least 70% by 2030, according to Bénin Web TV. La Nouvelle Tribune also links IPP50 to the goal of connecting an additional 928,000 households and to Mission 300, an initiative aimed at giving 300 million people in Africa access to electricity by 2030.
