A consortium made up of Gridworks, Eranove, and AEE Power has signed three concession agreements with the Ministry of Hydraulic Resources and Electricity of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for the implementation of the proposed Essor A2E solar project.

The 22-year concession agreements, signed in Kinshasa by Gridworks’ CEO, Mr. Simon Hodson, and the Congolese Minister of Hydraulic Resources and Electricity, Mr. Mwenze Mukaleng, will see the Gridworks led consortium to develop, build and operate three large scales, solar-hybrid, off-grid utilities in the cities of Gemena, Bumba and Isiro in the northern region of the Central African Country.

Name of the company in charge of the implementation of the project

The consortium, which was selected as the winning bidder for the Project some times last year after an international tender process run by the Project Coordination and Management Unit (UCM) of the Ministry of Hydraulic Resources and Electricity with support and funding from the government of the UK, also announced the brand name of the company that will ultimately provide power to the residents and businesses of the aforementioned cities, which currently do not have a grid connection, and struggle to access reliable, affordable and clean power.

The company will be dubbed Moyi Power Company, a name derived from the Lingala word for sun “Moyi”.  Lingala is one of the four national languages of DRC, and the main language of Gemena, Bumba, and Isiro cities.

Start of the implementation of the project

The construction of the three power plants and associated distribution networks, which is expected to take approximately one and a half years to complete, will start upon the conclusion of financing and other contractual arrangements.

The consortium is currently in discussions for the provision of debt finance with the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund and the African Development Bank (AfDB). It also in talks with the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), the Rockefeller Foundation, and the AfDB’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa, for potential provision of grants.