- The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is managing a solar PV tender on behalf of Gambia’s National Water & Electricity Company (NAWEC).
- The tender is for two projects; a 7MW capacity plant with battery storage and a 3.5 MW plant.
- The PPA’s will carry a 20 year term.
The 7 MW project will be located in Farafenni, in the Gambia’s North Bank Division. This facility will be coupled with battery storage to balance PV supply and demand on the grid, the UNDP said.
The 3.5 MW project will located at Basse, in the easternmost part of the country. Both projects will supply electricity to the national grid under a build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) model. The closing date for bids is April 23. Link to tender document
The two projects are receiving support from the NAMA Facility, which was jointly established by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety and the U.K. Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
The Gambia is currently constructing a large substation linking to the East African Power Pool. Read more
The country has also received a loan of Euro 142 million for energy infrastructure upgrade in order to gear up for renewable energy integration. Read more
Gambia is a small country located on the North West Coast of Africa. The country has an installed capacity of 125 megawatts (MW) which is generated from fossil fuels.
Only 35% of the Gambia’s 2 million population has access to electricity. The Gambia is a signatory to the ECOWAS pledge to have a renewable energy account for 10 percent of the total energy generated in the country by 2020.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
