420 megawatts is the expected energy capacity of the Nachtigal hydroelectric dam. Although work is estimated to have reached an overall completion rate of 95.8%, it will be necessary to wait until September 18, 2024 to reach the 180 megawatts injected into Cameroon’s power grid, and until the end of December for the site to be handed over. This observation was made during a visit to the infrastructure by Abdoul Salam Bello, Executive Director of the World Bank’s Africa II Group, on August 20, 2024.
From September 18, 2024, the Nachtigal dam will inject 180 megawatts of energy into the Southern interconnected grid, thanks to the commissioning of the 3rd generating unit of the infrastructure. During a visit by the Executive Director of the World Bank’s Africa II Group, Abdoul Salam Bello, the authorities in charge of the Nachtigal Hydro Power Company (NHPC) revealed these figures, as well as the overall progress rate of work on the Nachtigal dam site, estimated at 95.8%. The administrator of the World Bank’s Africa II Group, whose institution provided 110 million euros in partial financing for the project, has expressed full satisfaction.
“It’s a great feeling of satisfaction and pride, not necessarily for me, but above all for the country I have the honor of representing on the Board of Directors. We can see that in Africa we can also carry out projects as large as these, but which have a fairly substantial development impact for our countries and their populations, because at the end of the day, what we’re saying is that development means helping to improve the living conditions of our fellow citizens.”
Abdoul Salam Bello, The Executive Director of the World Bank Group for the Africa Group II – Niger
Thanks to this infrastructure, Cameroon is strengthening its sub-regional leadership in terms of access to energy. The contribution of the Nachtigal dam should help to reduce the energy divide in the Central African country, a prerequisite for achieving the country’s emergence objectives. According to estimates by the National institute of statistique (INS), the rate of access to electricity in Cameroon’s urban areas was 87.6% in 2022, compared with 28.4% in rural areas. In addition to reducing energy costs for the Cameroonian population, the completion of this infrastructure should enable the country to save an additional $100 million in production costs each year.
“First and foremost, it’s a concrete expression of the Cameroonian government’s determination to provide affordable energy to the country’s population. So this project will contribute to an output cost per kilowatt that will be five times lower than what already exists. For us, it’s an extremely important program, firstly for the country, then of course for the sub-region and finally, of course, I’d say it contributes to the World Bank’s initiative to connect 300 million Africans by 2030.”
Abdoul Salam Bello, The Executive Director of the World Bank Group for the Africa Group II – Niger
For the moment, only 2 of the dam’s generating units are in service, with a combined power output of 120 megawatts. Completion is scheduled for December 2024.
