Joule Africa, the renewable energy developer and operator, has signed, alongside Cameroon’s Minister of Water Resources and Energy, H.E. Basille Atangana Kouna and the CEO of ENEO, Joel Nana Kontchou , a Letter of Intent to take the Kpep Hydropower project in Cameroon to the next stage in its development.
As part of the agreement, Joule Africa will undertake comprehensive feasibility studies to build on the pre-feasibility study it commissioned in 2012, which highlighted the potential for creating 485MW of installed capacity.
Commenting on this announcement, Mark Green, President of Joule Africa, said:
“Kpep has the opportunity to transform the economic landscape in the North of Cameroon. It should provide up to 3000 jobs during the construction phase; create significant direct and indirect employment once operational; benefit the local communities; and go a long way towards satisfying the country’s ever-increasing demand for energy by boosting Cameroon’s current energy capacity by up to 40%.”
“It is also a significant milestone for Joule Africa as we look to develop other power projects alongside the Bumbuna II hydro project in Sierra Leone.”
The Kpep Hydropower project is the initial site to be developed as part of a cascade of five sites on the Katsina Ala River in North West Cameroon. The full feasibility studies will include topographical surveys, geotechnical investigation works, preliminary engineering design and a full internationally-compliant environmental and social impact assessment. It is estimated that the feasibility study will take two years with a further four years of construction in order to commission the plant during 2023.