Kinguélé Aval Hydroelectric Power Station is a hydroelectric power station, under construction across the Mbei River, a tributary of the Komo River, in Gabon. It is the first grid-ready, privately owned hydroelectric power station in the country.
Location The power station is located across the Mbei River, in Estuaire Province, approximately east of Libreville, the capital and largest city in Gabon. Kinguélé Aval Hydroelectric Power Station will be downstream of the 69 megawatt Tchimbélé Hydroelectric Power Station and downstream of the 58 megawatt Kinguélé Hydroelectric Power Station.
Overview The power station is under development by a consortium comprising Meridiam, an international firm based in Paris, France, that focuses on "developing, financing and managing long-term public infrastructure projects", and the Gabonese Strategic Investment Fund (FGIS).
The owners have established a special-purpose vehicle company called Asonha Energie SA, to develop, manage and maintain the proposed power station and associated infrastructure developments. The energy generated at this power station will be sold to Société d’énergie et d’eau du Gabon (SEEG), the national electricity utility company, under a 30-year power purchase agreement (PPA).
Ownership The table below illustrates the shareholding in Asonha Energie, the special vehicle company, established to own, develop and manage the Kinguélé Aval Hydroelectric Power Station.
+ Shareholding in Asonha Energie SA Rank Shareholder Domicile Percentage 1 Meridiam France 60.0 2 Gabon Power Company Gabon 40.0 Total 100.00
Construction costs and funding The engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for this project was awarded to Sinohydro, the Chinese, state-owned hydropower engineering and construction company. The construction budget has been reported as €176 million (approx. US$209 million). Later, this was revised to €179 million (117.4 billion CFA francs).
The funders for this power station include the entities listed in the table below:
+ Sources of funding for Kinguélé Aval Hydroelectric Dam Rank Name of development partner€ (million) Percentage 1 African Development Bank 2 Africa Growing Together Fund 3 Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa 4 International Finance Corporation 5 Canada–IFC Program for Renewable Energy in Africa 6 Development Bank of Southern Africa 7 Emerging Africa Infrastructure Development Fund Total
See also
List of power stations in Gabon FE2 Hydroelectric Power Station
References
External links New hydropower project for Gabon backed by AfDB As of 12 July 2021.