Faith Nyasuguta
Niger has initiated operations at its largest solar power plant, announced the energy minister. This move comes as a response to electricity shortages caused by neighboring Nigeria’s supply cuts in sanctions following a July coup.
Mahaman Moustapha Barke, speaking on television, mentioned that the national power company Nigelec has observed an “enhancement in the quality of the service” in the capital Niamey and the towns of Dosso and Tillaberi.
Abundant solar energy resources grace the landlocked West African nation, primarily covered by deserts. The facility, adorned with over 55,000 solar panels, boasts the capability to generate 30 megawatts of electricity.
Originally scheduled to commence operations on August 25, the start was delayed due to the departure of most technical staff following the coup, as explained by Barke. However, thanks to the dedication of the technicians who stayed in Niamey, the plant’s initiation became possible.
The French embassy in Niger issued a warning citing “operational risks” due to the solar plant not being completed under the initially planned conditions.
The project incurred a cost of 20 billion CFA francs (approximately $33 million), primarily financed through a loan from the French development agency and an EU grant.
Widespread blackouts have affected most of Niger since Nigeria, the main electricity supplier, halted deliveries as part of regional sanctions imposed against the leaders of the military coup on July 26.
Before the coup, Nigeria constituted 70 percent of the electricity purchased by Nigelec, as revealed in a 2022 report from Niger’s sole power supplier.
In an effort to decrease its reliance on Nigerian electricity, Niger has initiated the construction of its first dam on the Niger River. This project reflects the nation’s strategic move toward enhancing its energy independence.
Niger’s military government asked West Africa’s regional court last week to order the lifting of sanctions imposed on the country by its neighbours following a July coup that deposed elected president Mohamed Bazoum.
“There is no sector of the Nigerien society that has not been affected by these sanctions” in one of the world’s poorest countries, Younkaila Yaye, one of the government’s lawyers, argued at the hearing in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.
After a group of soldiers calling itself the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland (CNSP) toppled Bazoum, a raft of economic sanctions were imposed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Other countries, including the United States, that had provided aid for health, security and infrastructure needs, also suspended their support.
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