Taking Africa to its Energy Future

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.

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.