The World Bank has approved a US$132 million loan to fund a dam that will increase the reliability of electricity production in Cameroon that will store water in the wet season to be used to power energy on the dry season.
27 March 2012: The World Bank has approved a US$132 million loan for the Lom Pangar Hydropower Project in Cameroon to support sustainable electricity generation and economic development.
Co-financed by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Central African States Development Bank (BDEAC), the European Investment Bank (EIB) the French Agency for Development (AFD), and the Government of Cameroon, the Lom Pangar dam will store water during the rainy season and release it during the dry season. The project is expected to increase electricity generation capacity by by 120 MW at two existing hydropower plants. This will improve the reliability of the power supply, as well as greatly lower the cost of power. Furthermore, the loan will fund a 30 MW power plant to replace an existing polluting thermal generation plant. The project is seen as an important step in improving overall economic growth and infrastructure development by tapping into Cameroon’s hydropower potential. [World Bank Press Release]