Voith has been selected as the general contractor by Communtauté Electrique du Bénin (CEB) for the modernization of the 65.6MW Nangbeto hydropower plant located along the Benin-Togo border.
Image: The Nangbeto hydropower plant supplies electricity to both Benin and Togo. Photo: courtesy of Voith GmbH & Co. KGaA.
Under its contract worth €22m, Voith will be responsible for undertaking extensive rehabilitation and modernization measures at the Nangbeto hydropower plant, which was built along the Mono River in the Plateaux Region of Togo.
The hydropower plant has been supplying electricity to both Benin and Togo since 35 years. It is the first power generation unit of CEB, which is a Beninese-Togolese joint venture.
The objective of Voith’s work will be to prepare the power plant to continue operations for at least another 30 years in addition to modernizing its auxiliary facilities.
The contract’s scope covers the refurbishment of the generators, the cavitation inspection of the two 32.8MW Kaplan-type turbines and the replacement of the blades and also the rehabilitation of the cooling system.
According to Voith, the supply buildings and the switchyard are also planned to be modernized to enable smooth operations for the next 30 years.
The company expects to complete its work on the project by autumn 2022. The modernization work will be executed during the plant’s operation, which means at least one of the two hydropower units will always be connected to the grid.
Voith Hydro Africa sales senior vice president Heike Bergmann said: “Nangbeto is currently the only power plant that simultaneously supplies Togo and Benin with renewable energy. We are proud to make this plant fit for the future.
“The project and the successful cooperation with our local partners provide us with a good basis for further modernization projects in Central and West Africa. Overall, the African continent has an enormous untapped hydropower potential. We want to use this potential to sustainably expand the regional power supply”.
The construction work for the modernization of the Nangbeto hydropower plant will be performed completely by local companies to create additional jobs in the region during the project period, said Voith.
The Nangbeto hydropower plant, which broke ground in 1984, entered into operations in 1987. Construction of the hydropower project was $98.2m.