A UK-based developer of African oil and gas projects has unveiled plans for what could be the first wind farm in Niger.
Savannah Energy signed an agreement with the west African country’s ministry of petroleum, energy and renewable energies for the 250MW Parc Eolien de la Tarka project.
It would be built in the Tahoua region in the south of the landlocked country and could produce its first kWh of power by 2025, the developer said.
The project could consist of up to 60 turbines, Savannah stated – indicating an average power rating of at least 4.1MW.
It plans to carry out a two-year feasibility study into the project, including assessment of wind conditions and how generated power could be fed into the national and regional electricity grids. The developer hopes to receive permitting approval for the project by 2023.
Savannah believes the wind farm could feed into the West African Power Pool (WAPP) high-voltage interconnection network, which enables power exchanges between countries in the region.
Niger is due to be connected to the WAPP in 2023 via a 330kV line financed by the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the European Union and the Agence Française de Développement. A groundbreaking ceremony was held for a stretch of the WAPP connecting Niger with Niger, Benin, Togo and Burkina Faso earlier this month.
Despite massive potential for growth due to favourable wind resources, only a handful of countries have developed wind farms in Africa.
There is about 8GW of operational wind capacity in Africa, according to “uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç Intelligence, the research and data division of “uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç.
Savannah has previously developed oil and gas fields in Niger and Nigeria in west Africa.
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