Burkina Faso, Niger crises to delay $700m WAPP project

The secretary-general of the West African Power Pool (WAPP), Siengui Apollinaire KI, has said that the political crises and insecurity in Niger and Burkina Faso would affect the completion of the core North project in 2024. 

Speaking during the 7th meeting of the Joint Supervision Committee (JSC) of the WAPP North Core Project on Friday in Abuja, KI said that the project would provide electricity from Nigeria to other landlocked countries of Burkina Faso, Niger, Togo, Benin Republic and other West African countries.

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Ki, who said that the project would cost close to $7million, said it had the potential to provide energy generation companies in Nigeria a new market to expand their operations.

The secretary-general also noted that the project was funded by donors like the World Bank (the main funder of the project), African Development Bank and European Union and Nigeria World Bank has 60 per cent funding of the project.

“When we started this project, we were thinking of two years to conclude the project but you know that the region has been confronted with security issues. There were wars in countries like Burkina Faso and Niger. This is a big challenge for us. So, the project was delayed. Surely, we will not be able to conclude it in two years, but we hope to make it in three years. That is, rather than concluding it in 2024, we will be able to finish it in 2025,” he said.