The Port Authority of Douala is preparing to enter the operational phase of an autonomous power plant project at the Douala-Bonabéri port complex, with construction scheduled to begin in March 2026. Once completed, the facility is expected to reach a capacity of 300 megawatts, securing electricity supply for port activities and eventually feeding surplus power into Douala’s urban grid.
The CFA628 billion project is governed by a concession agreement signed on September 12, 2025, between the Port Authority of Douala and Douala Port Power Corporation S.A., the project company designated as the developer. It is being implemented as a public-private partnership under a build-operate-transfer model spanning 25 years.
Construction has been awarded to a consortium of Chinese firms under an engineering, procurement, and construction contract. The group is led by Genertec CMC, with China Energy participating as a contractor and JD Group acting as consulting engineer. The Port Authority of Douala is providing project oversight.
Financing is structured around a package combining support from the Chinese state and financial institutions, with CCA Bank acting as lead arranger. The investment is to be fully carried by Douala Port Power Corporation, without financial guarantees from either the port authority or the Cameroonian government.
Work on the project is expected to run for 36 months and unfold in two stages. The first phase involves the construction of a 102-megawatt power plant, along with a gas pipeline linking Kribi to Douala, at an estimated cost of CFA397 billion. The second phase, spread over a 10-year period, will gradually increase capacity to 300 megawatts through an additional investment of CFA230 billion.
At the signing of the agreement, Cyrus Ngo’o, the port authority’s director general, said the project would ensure a stable and cleaner energy supply for port operations while easing pressure on Douala’s electricity network, which is frequently affected by outages and related economic losses. The plant is presented as meeting international energy-efficiency standards applied to ports and vessels and as a key component of the port’s long-term development plan.
Beyond energy security, the project is also positioned as a competitiveness lever. Port officials say energy autonomy will improve the reliability of logistics operations and strengthen Douala’s role as a maritime hub in Central Africa. The developers estimate that the project will generate more than 1,100 direct and indirect jobs during construction and operation, while creating recurring revenue streams for both the port authority and the Cameroonian state through electricity sales.