Voith has been appointed the general contractor for the modernisation of the West African hydro-power plant in Nangbeto.

The technology group has received an order from the Communauté Electrique du Bénin (CEB) — a Beninese-Togolese joint venture — to carry out extensive “rehabilitation and modernisation” measures at the plant, which has been in operation for 35 years on the border between the two countries.

The aim of the work is to secure the plant’s operation for at least another 30 years and to modernise its auxiliary facilities. The contract is worth 22 million euros.

The order includes the refurbishment of the generators, the ‘cavitation inspection’ of the turbines and the replacement of the blades, as well as the ‘rehabilitation’ of the cooling system.

In addition, the automation and communication infrastructure will be overhauled, while a water treatment plant will supply the neighbouring communities with fresh water.

To ensure smooth operations for the next 30 years, the modernisation of the supply buildings and the switchyard is also planned.

The work is due to be completed by the autumn of 2022 and will be carried out during operation, meaning that at least one of the two units (each with a capacity of 32.5MW) will always be connected to the grid.

The construction work on site will be carried out entirely by local companies, so that jobs can be created during the project period.

Heike Bergmann, senior vice-president at Voith Hydro (www.voithgroup.com), said: “Nangbeto is currently the only power plant that simultaneously supplies Togo and Benin with renewable energy.

“It gives us a good basis for further modernisation projects in Central and West Africa.

"Overall, the African continent has an enormous untapped hydro-power potential.

"We want to use this potential to sustainably expand the regional power supply.”