Two of Senegal’s national utilities have inked public-private partnership (PPP) agreements that will see them increase water and power supply.

According to ESI-Africa, the National Water Company of Senegal has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)with Saudi-based ACWA Power that will see the construction of the country’s first PPP-operated water desalination plant. Based in the city of Grande Côte, the seawater reverse osmosis plant, which will be one of the largest of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, will process 300 000㎥ of water a day. 

Under the second MoU, the National Electric Company of Senegal and ACWA Power will develop a combined cycle gas-turbine plant in Cap des Biches with an initial design capacity of 160 MW. The new facility will help Senegal in its bid to reduce its GHG emissions by at least 23% by 2030.

The two projects are being built to meet a rapid increase in demand from Senegal’s Dakar-Mbour-Thies triangle, which represents more than 5 million consumers.

18 October 2022
Image: Gallo/Getty Images