Under the aegis of the World Bank’s Scaling Solar program, designed to accelerate the deployment of solar farms via public-private partnerships (PPPs), Côte d’Ivoire is making progress despite the notable delays observed in the program on an African scale. After almost three years since the launch of the tender for the construction of the Laboa and Touba solar power plants, the results have finally been published, selecting ten companies to continue the process. These solar programs thus follow in the footsteps of those previously undertaken in the country, which is also known for its oil and gas reserves.
Consortiums and key competitors
Among the qualified companies, the Franco-French consortium between Meridiam and EDF Renouvelables stands out, as does Voltalia, another major French company. Other major players include Scatec from Norway, Globeleq from the UK and Enel Green Power from Italy. These companies are now in the running to finalize their proposals by August 9, 2024 with Côte d’Ivoire’s Ministry of Mines, Petroleum and Energy and the state-owned company CI-Énergies.
Impact and future objectives
The selected companies will be tasked with building facilities capable of supplying a combined power of 60 MWp to the national grid. This development is part of the Ivorian government’s strategy to increase the share of renewable energies to 45% by 2030, significantly diversifying the country’s energy mix.
These initiatives reflect Côte d’Ivoire’s commitment to a sustainable energy transition, and illustrate the potential of PPPs in achieving national and regional energy goals.
