Good prospects for African energy in 2025
GTA The year 2025 opened in Senegal with the announcement of the commissioning of the first well to produce gas from the GTA (Grand Tortue Ahmeyim) field. The gas will be transported to the FPSO designed to remove certain fractions of the gas and impurities, and the “purified” methane will then be transported to the artificial port (breakwater) set up some ten kilometers off the coast of Saint Louis. This port houses the FLNG (Floating Liquefied Natural Gas) vessel of the Golart type - a former methane carrier transformed by the addition of liquefaction processes. The first cargoes of LNG - Liquefied Natural Gas - are due to be delivered shortly.
More hydrocarbons 2024 will have seen the start-up of the Sangomar oil field in Senegal and progress in bringing the Baleine and Calao fields in Côte d'Ivoire into production. Also in the hydrocarbon sector, oil production in Nigeria and Ghana rose (after a number of declines), while production in the other major producers (Algeria, Libya, Angola, Gabon and Congo-Brazzaville) remained stable. The start-up of gas liquefaction operations in Congo-Brazzaville and the prospects for gas in Mozambique are also noteworthy.
Electricity : absolute necessity Electricity production is also rising sharply, but is still too low to meet the population's considerable needs. In 2024, the population of West Africa was 450 million, and could reach 800 million by 2050. For the moment, the rate of access to electricity in West Africa remains just over 50%, and is still very low in several countries. The objective for all countries is, of course, to increase this access rate. Significant progress is expected in some countries. This progress will be driven by the significant use of gas and, above all, the development of solar energy. In 2024, the largest solar power plant in West Africa was inaugurated in Togo. The objective of many countries is to reach a rate of40% renewable electricity in the electricity mix.
More information
- The next SIEPA (Salon International de l'Energie et du Pétrole en Afrique – International Exhibition of Petroleum and Energy in Africa) organized by ASDEA and ADEA will take place on May 6 and 7 in Dakar.
- On the site you'll find presentations on the various renewable energies, developed during a course recently given in Morocco by students from the Ecole Centrale de Casablanca.
- Finally, please note the publication of my book “Geopolitics of Energy Transition”, published in French in 2023 and in English recently by ISTE. Don't hesitate to contact me
Jean-Pierre Favennec
Président
Association pour
le Développement
de l'Énergie en Afrique