World Bank to Provide $311 Million for Solar & Storage Projects in West Africa

The World Bank Group has approved $311 million in International Development Association (IDA) financing from its new Regional Emergency Solar Power Intervention Project (RESPITE) to install and operate solar, battery energy storage systems (BESS), and hydroelectric projects in West African countries.

The financing includes a grant of $20 million to help facilitate future regional power trade and strengthen the institutional and technical capacities of the West Africa Power Pool to undertake its regional mandate.

RESPITE’s main goal is to expand the grid-connected clean energy capacity in the participating nations while improving regional integration in Chad, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Togo. Sub-Saharan Africa has one of the lowest electrification rates coupled with some of the highest power costs. RESPITE is World Bank’s response to the ongoing energy crisis in West Africa to accelerate the deployment of more clean energy in the region.

The IDA financing will fund the installation and operation of ~106 MW of solar photovoltaic with BESS, and the expansion of hydroelectric capacity to 41 MW. It will further bolster power distribution and transmission interventions across the four countries.

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