BARRAGE HYDROÉLECTRIQUE DE SAMBANGALOU

The project

This dam will generate renewable energy, irrigate farmland, support fish farming and contain the salt front in the river.

It will have installed capacity to generate 128 MW and its annual output will reach 400 GWh. The reservoir will span 188 sq. km (18% in Senegal, 82% in Guinea) and hold 4 billion cu. metres of water.

The solution

This first large hydroelectric dam built in Senegal will supply green, low-carbon energy, account for 7% of the country’s installed capacity and increase the proportion of renewable energy in the country’s mix (which already exceeds 30%).

The electricity produced will be distributed through grid interconnecting the four countries in the OMVG: Senegal, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Gambia.

The challenge

The biggest challenge was the logistics in this secluded jungle spot in the Kédougou region, and careful preparation and anticipation were the keys to overcoming it.

Environment

Working closely alongside the OMVG’s engineering consultancy, the financial institution’s environmental and social consultancy (the UN Environment Management Group) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), we established the best approach to restore the local chimpanzees’ habitat, protect biodiversity during the project and help restore Niokolo-Koba National Park, one of the last remaining sanctuaries for wild animals in West Africa.