The government of Benin through the council of ministers has agreed to hire a consortium of consulting engineers from Défis et Stratégies and Energy consulting group Ltd to ensure project management of the Maria-Gléta 2 thermal power station whose work is imminent.
The consortium has strongly contributed to the success of the construction project of the 127 MW Maria-Gléta 1 thermal power plant which was inaugurated by Benin’s energy minister, Dona Jean-Claude Houssou, in September 2019.
The decision to hire the consortium for the second phase was reached in a bid to capitalize on the experience and reduce the timeframe for the completion of the project, based on the expertise, technicality, and thoroughness it has shown.
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This step is proof that the government is pursuing its agenda and its energy policy by completing due diligence to provide Benin in the next 18 months with a second thermal power station, this time of 143 Mw.
An overview of Maria-Gléta 1 thermal power plant
Located near the city of Cotonou, an economic center on the south coast of the West African country, the Maria-Gléta 1 thermal power plant supplies the national grid with 127MW of electricity.
It runs on seven gensets from Germany’s MAN Energy Solutions, a multinational company that produces large-bore diesel engines and turbomachinery for marine and stationary applications, like marine propulsion systems, power plant applications, and turbochargers, and which built the plant in a consortium with Denmark’s Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC), a global turnkey developer, contractor, and operator of custom specific engine-based and boiler-based power plants.
The plant, which increased Benin’s capacity for electricity generation by more than 50%, was part of the government’s ‘Revealing Benin’ action plan, which centers around 45 flagship projects aimed at strengthening macroeconomic development, consolidating democracy, and improving the lives of the population.
