BNP Paribas subsidiary provides financing for Essakane solar power plant

EREN Renewable Energy, the developer of the 15MWc solar plant which is to power the Essakane gold mine in Burkina Faso, announced last week that the project will be financed by the Banque Internationale pour le Commerce, l'Industire et l'Agriculture du Burkina (BICIAB).

The BICIAB is a local subsidiary of the BNP Paribas group. The two parties have signed a senior loan agreement with limited recourse, valued at CFA9.2 billion (US$16.5 million).

Christophe Fleurence, Vice-President EREN Renewable Africa, said:

"We are very happy of this partnership with the BICIAB which was highly responsive in the framework of the funding's elaboration for this project."

The Essakane gold mine is located in the north-east of Burkina Faso. It straddles the boundary of the Oudalan and Seno provinces in the Sahel region of Burkina Faso, in the Sahel Reserve. It has been operated by Canadian firm, Iamgold, since February 2009, with commercial production commencing in July 2010.

The development of the solar plant is intended to lower the carbon footprint of the mine. Its fuel consumption currently stands at about six million liters every year, and its annual CO2 emissions are approximately 18,500 tons.

The plant's construction commenced in May 2017 under the management of Wärtsilä. It is expected to come online in Q1 2018.