The Mauritanian economy ministry and the African Development Bank (AfDB) sealed a financing agreement of USD 289.5 million (EUR 267.5 million). The initiative is designed to energize rural communities, establish a cross-border electricity connection between Mauritania and Mali, and tap into solar capabilities.
Mauritania will benefit from a USD-272-million loan from the African Development Fund (ADF), the concessional window of the AfDB group, and a USD-1.5-million grant from the Green Climate Fund to realize the combined interconnection and solar project. Specifically, the funding will be used to invest in the 1,373-km (853.1 miles) Mauritania-Mali interconnection with a 600-MW transfer capacity and the installation of solar farms along the 225 kV high-voltage line on Mauritania’s side of the border.
Additionally, the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) is providing a USD 16 million grant for a rural electrification project in Mauritania. This initiative will bring electricity to 40 localities in south-eastern Mauritania by connecting villages to mini solar farms hybridized with a backup generator.
“There can be no sustainable, diversified economic growth without high-quality, reliable electricity that is accessible to all. Within this framework, the government has drawn up ambitious programs seeking to guarantee access to electricity for all citizens by 2030, and this requires the optimal exploitation of the energy sources available in the country, to which this financing from the African Development Bank will contribute,” Mauritania’s Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Abdelssalam Mohamed Saleh, said.
