Senelec arrears reach CFA 320 billion in Senegal
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Senego
The Special Fund to Support the Energy Sector has exhausted its CFA 250 billion allocation, while arrears linked to Senelec have reached about CFA 320 billion. Senegal’s economy ministry warns that the situation threatens fuel supplies and electricity generation, dakar92 reports.
Arrears related to Senelec’s commercial losses and fuel purchases have reached about CFA 320 billion, while the Special Fund to Support the Energy Sector has exhausted its CFA 250 billion allocation provided for in the initial 2026 Finance Act. The Ministry of Economy, Finance and Planning warned MPs of a risk of fuel shortages and power cuts, in responses whose contents were reported by dakar92.
Since the beginning of September, power cuts have multiplied in Dakar and several other localities, with some interruptions lasting a long time. Senelec, the public electricity supplier, attributes the disruptions to accumulated difficulties and its heavy reliance on fuel oil, despite using liquefied natural gas since 2020. The rise in the price of oil, from $60 to $100 a barrel in recent months, has also increased its costs, according to information provided to MPs.
The government is counting on the 2026 supplementary Finance Act to release CFA 540.3 billion in additional funding, notably for oil operators and electricity generation. The hydrocarbons component of CERP, the public mechanism supporting energy supplies, is to receive CFA 72 billion. The bill nevertheless projects a deficit of 7.6% of GDP and a financing requirement of CFA 6,774 billion.
The new warning comes after the Senegalese committee rejected the supplementary budget, a decision announced on 30 October. It follows debates on the 2026 supplementary Finance Act rejected by Ousmane Sonko, and then the rejection of the supplementary budget on 30 October.
