The High Commissioner of the Organization for the Development of Senegal, Mr. Hamed Diane Ségéga, and the Chinese company Sinohydro corporated, signed this February 26, 2019 in Conakry the commercial contract for the realization of the project of hydroelectric development of Koukoutamba.
The ceremony was attended by Mr. Cheik TalibySylla, Minister of Energy and Hydraulics of the Republic of Guinea, President-in-Office of the OMVS Council of Ministers.
The hydroelectric development of Koukoutamba is planned in Guinean territory on the Bafing, main tributary of the Senegal River, about 570 km north-east of the capital Conakry. It consists mainly of the dam, HV transmission lines, an access road of 150 km and the City of the Owner.
Koukoutamba will be the fourth and largest hydropower development carried out by OMVS, after those of Manantali (2002), Felou (2013), and Gouina (under construction). The plant will have an installed capacity of 294 MW for an average annual yield of 888 GWh. Two 225 KV high-voltage transmission lines with a total cumulative length of approximately 600 km leave the power plant, the first to Conakry via the sub-regional interconnection substation in Linsan and the second to the Manantali dam. They will connect the Guinean electricity grid to the Omvs network, called the Manantali Interconnected Grid (RIMA).
The project will also participate in the regulation of flows in the Senegal River, to the benefit of activities related to agriculture, navigation, the supply of drinking water, fishing and the preservation of the basin’s ecosystems.
Innovative financing
The cost of the project is estimated at 812 million USD. The financing method selected is Engineering ProcurementConstruction (EPCF), ie turnkey construction, with financing. This is the first project of the Omvsconçu according to this mode of financing. The estimated time of completion of the work is 4 years.
Three (3) other hydroelectric developments are planned in the medium term by the OMVS on the Guinean territory, as well as about twenty micro-power sites intended for rural electrification.
The implementation of the OMVS infrastructure program will make available 67% of the total hydropower capacity of the basin, estimated at 2,000 MW. It will generate an annual saving of about 240 billion CFA francs on the oil import bills of the Member States.
As a reminder, OMVS is actively involved in supplying Member States with energy by selling electricity to the various national companies in charge of electricity. As it stands, 260 MW are produced by the Manantali and Felou plants and routed through the Manantali Interconnected Grid (RIMA).
About the Organization for the Development of the Senegal River
Founded in March 1972, OMVS is an inter-state body comprising Senegal, Mauritania, Guinea and Mali. Its vocation is to promote an integrated and coordinated development of the Senegal River Basin, based on the control and rational exploitation of water resources. This ambition of states is cemented by ideals of solidarity, sharing, equity and a culture of peace.
