Market Trends of West Africa Renewable Energy Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the West Africa Renewable Energy Market according to our research experts:
Hydropower Segment to Dominate the Market
- The hydropower segment is expected to dominate the market as dams have been built across West Africa. Most of the renewable hydro capacity has been constructed in Nigeria and Ghana.
- The hydropower segment includes different-sized reservoir dams that can be used to provide renewable energy. Hydropower is the most used renewable energy in West Africa.
- In November 2022, the Nigerian government approved the construction of a 1,650 MW hydropower plant at USD 3 billion. The project would be funded under a public-private partnership arrangement and located in the north-central state of Benue, Laolu Akande.
- In September 2021, the Souapiti hydropower plant in Guinea began commercial operation. The facility will produce 1,900 GWh of clean energy per year and increase production of the downstream Kaléta hydro scheme to 1,000 GWh/per year.
- Hydropower (including mixed plants) constitute almost 94.2%of the total renewable energy generated in the region, with nearly 5,513 MW of power being produced, in 2021.
- Therefore, vast reservoirs of dams providing renewable energy are expected to continue to dominate the market due to their large size relative to other renewable energy and an increase in investments.
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Nigeria to Dominate the Market
- Nigeria is expected to have the largest share of renewable energy among the nations in the forecast period due to its significant consumption of electricity and government focus on decreasing dependence on imported fossil fuel.
- Nigeria is the most populous nation in West Africa. The country's high demand for electricity due to the high population is expected to promote growth in renewable energy. However, the high cost of renewable energy causes constraints to its growth.
- Most of the installed renewable capacity in the country comes from Hydropower projects. In 2021, Hydropower constituted 2111 MW of installed capacity, which is approximately 98% of all the renewable energy in the country. However, this scenario is expected to change during the forecast period owing to increasing investment in solar energy.
- In September 2022, Sterling & Wilson Renewable Energy bagged a USD 1.5-billion order from the government of Nigeria, along with its consortium partner Sun Africa, for setting up solar PV power plants aggregating 961 MW at five locations along with battery energy storage systems with a total installed capacity of 455 MW.
- Hence, Nigeria is expected to dominate the market due to its large size and increased renewable energy installed capacity in the forecast period.
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