Cap des Biches

Cap des Biches is an 86 MW thermal generation facility developed and constructed by ContourGlobal in two phases—53 MW that began generating electricity in April 2016 after only 14 months of construction, and a second phase consisting of 33 MW that broke ground in January 2016 and produced first electricity already in September 2016.

Thermal

Engines Plant

Senegal

86.6 MW

Cap Des Biches

Engines Plant in Senegal

The new Cap des Biches power plant was designed to utilize the existing facilities and infrastructure of an old power plant site to lower the cost of development and construction. The plant consists of five Wärtsilä 18V46 combustion engines equipped with a highly efficient “Flexicycle” system, which uses waste heat to power a steam turbine. This state-of-the-art technology enables Cap des Biches to provide the lowest cost energy in Senegal, and the facility can easily be converted to burn natural gas, providing the Senegalese with valuable fuel flexibility.

Cap Des Biches - Old Plant

The Cap des Biches power plant is designed to operate day and night and will significantly boost Senegal's economic growth. The project’s innovative ﬁnancing model brings together two leading development ﬁnance institutions: OPIC and IFC, with OPIC providing an 18-year ﬁnancing of USD 91m for Phase I, and IFC providing an 18-year cross currency swap of the same amount and tenor. OPIC and IFC provided a similar structure for the USD41 million financing of Phase II.