Nachtigal Hydropower

Project At a Glance

25 %

increase in Cameroon’s generation capacity

1 m

tons of CO₂ emissions expected to be avoided annually

1500

jobs created

Nachtigal Falls, Cameroon

Africa50-Project Finance

Nachtigal Amont HPP is a 420 MW hydropower plant under construction on the Sanaga River, 65 kilometres from Yaoundé, with a 50-kilometer transmission line to Nyom. It is expected to be completed in about five years at a cost of around €1.2 billion and it will be operated under a 35-year concession.

The project reached financial close in December 2018. The African Development Bank is a lender to the project.

Impact

Productivity

The plant is expected to increase Cameroon’s generation capacity by more than 25%, improving access to electricity for consumers.
The lower prices from hydropower are expected to improve the long-term financial sustainability of the sector, making electricity more accessible to the poor, and saving consumers about US$100 million over a seven-year period.

Environment

The plant is expected to help raise the share of renewables in Cameroon’s energy mix to 75% by 2022 and avoid the emission of one million tons of CO2 annually/