Unanimous Approval! Sierra Leone sets to electrify Kenema, other areas

The government of Sierra Leone has unanimously approved the CLSG interconnection in Kenema, Bo and other areas in the country, a press release issued by the Ministry of Energy has confirmed.

According to the press release issued recently, the Cabinet reviewed the preconditions, background, strategic relevance, urgency, and benefits of the CLSG project, and unanimously approved the interconnection process. The government assured Sierra Leoneans that it’s doing everything to ensure stable electricity from the CLSG line is commissioned in Kenema and Bo in the following weeks.

The government’s assurance comes in the wake of TRANSCO CLSG’s continuous energization of its transmission line and substations in Liberia and Sierra Leone respectively. The regional transmission company responsible for the transmission of affordable and reliable electricity to millions of citizens in Liberia, Sierra Leona and Guinea has tested and energized the transmission line between the Mano substation in Liberia through the Kenema substation in Tiloma, which is 8.4km from Kenema Town.

TRANSCO CLSG has also energized the Bikongor substation located in Bumpe, Sierra Leone. These stations are now fully energized for interconnection to the Sierra Leone distribution networks, the press release said and added that the electricity on the transmission network will be provided by CI Energies, a company organized and existing under the laws of Cote d’Ivoire.

The connection to the Kenema distribution network requires a 33kv transmission line from Tiloma to the EDSA Kenema substation. “Therefore, given the importance and urgency of power to the region, the government of Sierra Leone has already paid the cost of the connection and implemented by EDSA,” the Ministry of Energy press release stated.

Meanwhile, the government has disclosed that to conclude the process for interconnection and energy transferred to the substations and load centers in each CLSG countries, three agreements have be finalized and signed.

These agreements, the release said, include the interconnection agreement which covers the technical rules of interconnection and operation between the TRANSCO CLSG and the utilities including the LEC of Liberia, EDSA of Sierra Leone and EDG of Guinea; the Transmission Services Agreement (TSA) between TRANSCO CLSG and the utilities of each country and the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) between the power producer (CI Energies) and the utilities in each country. The agreements are being finalized and signed by each country utility.

TRANSCO CLSG transmission line transverses eight out of the 16 (two new districts added in 2016) districts in Sierra Leone. The eight districts include Pujehun, Kenema, Kono, Tonkolili, Bombali, Falaba, Karene and Kambia district.