Conditions for the first release of funds for the US$146mn ContourGlobal Togo project, one of the largest investments in the West African energy sector, were concluded on May 11, and construction work has begun.

ContourGlogal Togo, a subsidiary of power project promoter, ContourGlobal signed a US$146mn non-recourse financing agreement with the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (Opic) in December last year.

The facility will be used for the construction of ContourGlobal’s 100MW power plant in Lomé, Togo.

The project is the first substantial foreign investment in Togo in over a decade, and is one of the most significant investments in the West African power sector in over 20 years. The power plant will produce approximately 780GW hours of electricity annually and will help the West African nation overcome an electricity shortage that has resulted in rolling blackouts and has inhibited its economic growth. The project is located within a region that is desperately seeking less expensive and more reliable sources of power. The plant will add a substantial source of clean, reliable, and low‐priced electricity, and provide diversity to the region’s sources of power generation.

ContourGlobal Togo has entered into a 25‐year concession and power purchase agreement under which it will sell electricity generated by the power plant to the Togolese electric distribution company, Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo.

When the deal closed at the end of last year, Joseph Brandt, president and CEO of ContourGlobal, stated, “Entering into this loan agreement with Opic amidst the unprecedented turmoil in the global credit markets shows that financing is available for well-structured projects in developing countries.

We value our relationship with OPIC and are grateful to them for the leadership they have shown with their support of this path-breaking project. We look forward to working with them on additional projects in the coming year.”

ContourGlobal develops and operates electric power and district heating businesses around the world and focuses both upon high‐growth, under‐served markets and innovative niches within developed markets – such as renewable energy and combined heat and power (CHP). The company consists of eight businesses on four continents with approximately 1,000MW of generating capacity and an active pipeline of new development business totalling 10,000MW.

International law firm, Gide Loyrette Nouel, advised the American group, ContourGlobal on the negotiation of the concession agreement and the electricity procurement contract, as well as the Togolese aspects of the financing of the thermal power station.