Grid-Connected Renewable Energy Flagship Projects

In view of the effort towards increasing the share of renewable energies in the overall energy mix of West Africa, the “ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency ” (ECREEE), in partnership with German International Cooperation (GIZ), launched the AGoSEREE-AO program “Improving the Governance of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Sector in West Africa”, aiming to accelerate the market development in the sector. A component of the program include disseminating lesson learnt by developers of flagship projects, in order to raise awareness of the challenges encountered and their solutions, and to encourage private investment in the sector.

To this end, certain grid connected renewable energy projects (RE) which can be considered as pioneers or flagship projects in a specific local context, either by the technology used or by the business model implemented, were chosen to be evaluated. The documentation of these projects and the dissemination of feedback is intended to support all stakeholders in the sector, including public and private promoters, decision-makers, regulators and consumers, to promote RE in general and during implementation of similar projects in the region.

With regard to biomass, two projects were selected – FasoBiogaz in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and Sunbird Bioenergy located in Mabilifu, Bombali District, Northern Province, Sierra Leone. This documentation focuses on FasoBiogaz and presents the data collected during a site visit and from studies conducted. It covers all relevant aspects of project including the history, technology, financing and the economic and environmental benefits.

FasoBiogaz produces biogas from organic waste at large scale. The main input material is supplied on a permanent basis from the slaughterhouse, based on a formal agreement between the two enterprises. The biogas is transformed into electricity, which is injected into the public power grid and thereby sold to the national electricity supplier, SONABEL. The digestate is sold as liquid and solid fertilizer.

The documents below describes the keys facts, lessons learned and challenges. For information about other flagship projects click here. Detail information about RE and EE projects, are available on our observatory for RE and EE at www.ecowrex.org