By State House Communication Unit
The documents for the largest energy project in Sierra Leone were signed on Friday 4 August and presented to President Ernest Bai Koroma at State House in Freetown.
The documents were signed at a ceremony attended by the president, the vice president, cabinet ministers, senior government officials, paramount chiefs of the project area as well as officials of Joule Africa and Seli Hydro Power.
Joule Africa is an African renewable power developer and operator selected to oversee the second phase of the Bumbuna Hydro Electric project. Joule Africa’s local management company, Seli Hydro Power, is responsible for managing the project.
Minister of Energy Ambassador Henry Macauley said shortly before presenting the signed documents to President Koroma, that the president had urged his ministry to find a lasting solution to intermittent power supply particularly during the dry season. To achieve the president’s agenda, Ambassador Macauley pointed out that his ministry has assiduously worked to provide a lasting solution to power supply by implementing the Bumbuna phase 2 project. The implementation of the project, he noted, will last for four years.
Explaining details of the project, Executive Chairman of Energy Services Company Patrick Beckley assured that in line with the local content policy of government, the construction of Bumbuna Phase 2 will provide an estimated 2500 jobs and the project upon completion will add 143 megawatts of power capacity to the national grid.
Receiving the document, President Koroma described the moment as a great one for government and the people of Sierra Leone but however warned against experience learned from the Bumbuna Phase One Project which was signed in the early 70’s and only commissioned on November 8, 2009. He therefore urged service providers to stick to the four years period indicated in the document to complete the work on the Bumbuna phase 2 project.
The Head of State also reminded the local chiefs and the District Council to provide proper sensitization to their people on the relocation process.
Thanking the president for his vision and ambition, Andrew Cavaghan, President of Joule Africa said the implementation phase will start at the end of the year and the construction work will commence in May 2018. Cyril Grant, project manager of Bumbuna phase 2, described the project as befitting legacy of President Koroma.
