Africa is ready to provide enough energy to achieve the most ambitious of goals, and it can do it while maintaining all environmental targets.
We believe careful planning of power systems towards more sustainable and diversified energy supply portfolios can save billions and rapidly reduce CO2 emissions. We create value through our extensive power system knowledge and experience from integrating different generating assets.
On this page, you may find our best materials and proceedings in energising and decarbonising the continent of Africa.
of engine power plant capacity installed.
Power plants installed across the continent
With more than 650 employees and service hubs located in Kenya, South Africa, and Senegal, Wärtsilä is proud to have contributed to many industry firsts. These include Africa’s largest gas engine power plant on the Kribi coast of Cameroon with 216MW capacity, as well as Africa’s highest installation, the 175 MW power plant in Sasolburg, South Africa, sitting at 1,700 meters above sea level.
Another first, the KivuWatt power plant in Rwanda, is the first ever power plant to use the naturally occurring methane from lake Kivu to generate electricity and reduce the environmental risks associated with such high concentrations of gas. Today’s power output is 25 MW but future planned expansions to this project will increase capacity by an additional 75 MW.
Since deciding in 2009 that its three new power plants would operate with Wärtsilä gas engines rather than gas turbines, the conventional choice at that time in Nigeria, Paras Energy has continued to benefit from that decision.
Reliable power generation in a remote off-grid location in Tanzania.
Our GEMS Digital Energy Platform together with energy storage solutions were the key players in helping the Fekola gold mine in Mali to reduce their dependency on expensive fuel, lower their carbon emissions and optimise their mining operations.
The Central Electricity Board (CEB) of Mauritius improved the performance as well as reduced the operating costs of their power plant by having a turbocharger retrofit.
The Essakane gold mine in Burkina Faso receives its needed power from Africa’s largest engine-solar PV hybrid power plant delivered by Wärtsilä. Benefits for the mine include reduced fuel costs and a smaller carbon footprint. The capability to control and optimise the usage of the solar PV power and engines enables the gold mine to reduce its fuel consumption by an estimated 6 million litres per year and its annual CO2 emissions by 18,500 tons.
Power plant overhaul boosts availability and grid stability.
With 450 MW of installed capacity in Senegal, Wärtsilä is the country’s leading provider of power generation equipment. The Matelec company placed an order for the delivery of an energy efficient 130 MW Flexicycle™ power plant. This investment will enable Senegal to achieve its goal of reducing consumer electricity pricing.
The Grande Côte Mineral Sands Project aims to extract valuable zircon and titanium dioxide from sandy deposits along the Senegalese coast from 2014 for at least the next 20 years.
"Our old generating equipment was replaced with more efficient units. New power plant technology is used to meet increased demand for electricity. Gas-engine technology allows us to reduce our carbon footprint by more than 40%."
This power plant utilises naturally occurring methane gas from Lake Kivu to generate electricity via Wärtsilä 34SG engines. Total output will be 25 MW. By reducing gas levels in the lake while, at the same time, providing additional power generating capacity, both environmental and economic targets can be met. This is the first time that Lake Kivu’s methane gas will be used to fuel a power plant of this size.
Wärtsilä Energy Storage & Optimisation offers unrivalled solutions to the most pressing energy challenges, including the integration of more renewables.
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