Lekela secures further $250 million funding

SENEGAL: Lekela Power has agreed a financing package from the US government's Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) to help fund a 158MW project in Senegal.

by David Weston 22 September 2016

Lekela Power's Noupoort project in South Africa

Lekela Power is Africa-focused development joint venture between Irish firm Mainstream Renewable Power and private-equity firm Actis.

The $250 million in funding, with an additional $70 milllion in reinsurance, will be used to support Senegal's first utility-scale wind project, the 158MW Taiba N'Diaye site. It was acquired by Lekela in June.

"This is a transformative project for many reasons, principally for the new and clean energy it will supply to Senegal. OPIC partnering with Lekela illustrates the opportunity for renewable resources to make a significant contribution to total energy needs," said OPIC chief executive Elizabeth Littlefield.

Following the acquisition of the project in June, Lekela also secured $117.5 million in funding from the International Finance Corporation for the project.

According to “uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç Intelligence, the research and data division of “uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç, French firm Sarreole, which signed a power purchase agreement with the state utility in 2014, was developing the project prior to Lekela's acquisition.

It is Lekela's first Senegalese project, adding to its renewable energy portfolio covering Egypt, South Africa and Ghana.