Cameroon’s Minister of Water and Energy, Gaston Eloundou Essomba, presided over the ceremony marking the injection of the first megawatts from the Nachtigal Dam today May 10. This step enables the injection of an additional 60 MW of energy into the Southern Interconnected Grid (RIS), covering seven out of Cameroon’s 10 regions.
“The commissioning of the six other units will be done progressively, at a rate of one 60 MW unit per month, to achieve commercial operation of the plant by December 2024. By that date, all production capacities will be installed and operational. The plant will provide a power output of 420 MW to the Southern Interconnected Grid, making Nachtigal the most powerful power plant in Cameroon,” Minister Eloundou Essomba stated.
The injection of the first megawatts from Nachtigal into the Cameroonian power grid is expected to alleviate ongoing disruptions in electricity distribution across the country. With a total investment of CFA786 billion, the Nachtigal Dam will significantly increase electricity production capacities in Cameroon by 30% at once. This energy infrastructure will also boost the contribution of hydroelectricity to the energy mix, leading to substantial savings on purchases of fuels for operating scattered thermal power plants nationwide.
Moreover, Nachtigal will position Cameroon as a pioneer in electricity export in Central Africa. This is thanks to the Cameroon-Chad Electricity Grid Interconnection Project (Pirect), which will enable Cameroon to supply 100 MW of electricity to Chad by 2027.