Bor (Gardete)

The project is promoted by SABER/ABREC and will be the biggest grid connected PV plant in Guinea Bissau. It has a capacity of 20 MW and consists of 16 units of 1,250 kW each. The plant in Bor will be financed by BOAD.

Expected year of commissioning: 2020

The tender process finalized in March 2019 and it is supported by SABER-ABREC - The Chinese state-owned company Sinohydro won the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract

The solar project for which Sinohydro signed the EPC contract involves three facilities. The first is a photovoltaic solar power plant to be built in Gardete, a town located 8 kilometres from the capital Bissau. The facility will have a capacity of 20 MWp. It will have a battery storage system to provide electricity to the inhabitants of Bissau and surrounding areas after sunset. Sinohydro will also provide a 30 kV line to transport the electricity to Bôr where it will be fed into the national grid via a substation.

The contract across the Abrec River also includes the construction of two hybrid power plants that will combine solar panels with diesel generators. A small plant will be built in Canchungo, a town of more than 7,000 inhabitants in the west of the country. With a capacity of 1 MW, this facility will also be equipped with batteries for electricity storage. The electricity will be evacuated through a medium and low-voltage transmission line that Sinohydro will also install.

The other small hybrid solar power plant will be built in the Gabu region in eastern Guinea Bissau. The plant equipped with a battery storage system and back-up generators (diesel), will also be capable of generating 1 MW. The solar hybrid plant will supply electricity to the local population via a medium and low-voltage line.

The entire solar and hybrid project is being financed to the tune of $42.9 million by the Government of Guinea-Bissau with a loan from the West African Development Bank (BOAD). This financing was granted as early as 2017.