- Two major projects combine solar power with battery storage to strengthen grid stability and reduce blackout risk.
- Diass solar plant upgraded with large scale storage backed by KfW and AFD financing.
- New 50 MWp hybrid facility in Linguère to power about 90,000 households.
Senegal’s national electricity utility Société Nationale d’Électricité du Sénégal (Senelec) has launched two major projects that integrate solar generation with battery storage as part of a wider strategy to improve grid reliability and raise the share of renewable energy in the national mix to 40% by 2030.
The first initiative is the expansion of the existing 23 MW Diass solar plant, which was inaugurated in 2022, through the addition of a large scale Battery Energy Storage System. The installation will include 30 battery containers and 360 converters and is designed to deliver more than 20,000 MWh of storage capacity annually. Financing for the project is provided by Germany’s KfW and the French Development Agency AFD. The storage system is expected to optimise solar generation, smooth output fluctuations and provide essential grid services such as frequency regulation to help prevent blackouts.
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The second project is a new hybrid solar and storage facility in Linguère, located northwest of Dakar. The development combines a 50 MWp solar plant with a 30 MW and 90 MWh storage system. It is being developed in partnership with Huawei and Genertec CNTIC. Once operational, the facility is expected to supply clean electricity to around 90,000 households, strengthening electricity access in line with national development goals.
These projects form part of Senegal’s broader push towards energy sovereignty and expanded electrification. The country is targeting universal electricity access by 2029, up from about 84% in early 2026. Alongside these new deployments, Senelec has also issued tenders for an additional 500 MW of solar capacity with integrated storage in Linguère and Kolda under an Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Finance model, signalling a continued acceleration of utility scale renewable energy development. Read more
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
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