Rosatom Building Nuclear Power and Solar Energy Plants in Burkina Faso and Mali

Russia’s energy development strategy continues in the Sahel region of Africa, where engineers from the Rosatom, the state nuclear energy company, are on a four-day visit to Burkina Faso to discuss building a Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in the country. Burkina Faso, previously the French colony of Upper Volta, is one of the world’s least electrified nations.

The Rosatom delegation arrived in the capital, Ouagadougou, on Tuesday (August 6) and have been holding talks with the Burkinabe Energy Ministry. Burkina Faso’s energy minister, Yacouba Zabré Gouba, said discussions would focus on technical issues, and creating the conditions for the project to start. “The nuclear power plant is essential for us because we believe that energy is a lever on which the country can acquire its real sovereignty in energy matters,” Gouba said.

Only 19.5% of Burkina Faso’s population has access to electricity, according to the World Bank. The landlocked country with over 20 million people has power generation capacity of 420 megawatts, with its energy mix dominated by fossil fuels.

The project took shape last October, when Burkina Faso’s interim leader, Ibrahim Traore, signed an agreement with Rosatom to build a nuclear power plant, following a request made to Russian President Vladimir Putin at the second Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg.

Burkina Faso’s energy minister stated that the Burkinabe government was “pinning much hope” on Rosatom’s visit, which will allow the country to deal with its “energy realities.” Rosatom’s chief engineer Alexander Renev, said “We cannot give an exact date for the completion of this plant, but we will do everything to deliver it as soon as possible.”

Burkina Faso has limited natural resources but does have significant gold and precious gem reserves, as well as an abundant cotton industry.

The Burkina Faso NPP project is the second that Rosatom is working on in the Sahel region. In May, Mali’s Energy Ministry announced the construction of a 200 megawatt (MW) solar power plant near the capital, Bamako, by NovaWind – the wind energy division of Rosatom. NovaWind’s director, Grigory Nazarov, said the facility, which will cost US$217 million, will increase the country’s electricity production by 10%.

Assisting poorer African nations in generating power will transfigure their economies and help with the transition from being largely agrarian economies to industrial production, while also improving the well-being of local citizens.