Mauritania commissions 30 MW wind farm

The Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz on Tuesday presided over the commissioning of a 30-megawatts wind power plant erected in Nouakchott, the capital.

The renewable energy plant is made up of 15 wind turbines of 2 megawatts each, a system of monitoring and control, a voltage transformer of 33 kilovolts and two medium voltage lines of 33 kilovolts each.

The overall cost of the project is estimated at Ouguiya 17 billion (US$51 million) jointly funded by the Mauritania and the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD).

“With the establishment of the wind farm, Mauritania has a new source of clean, safe and affordable energy production,” the Mauritanian Minister of Petroleum, Energy and Mines, Mohamed Salem Ould Bechir boasted.

The wind farm will contribute in 2016 up to 13.6% in the power needs of the Mauritanian Electricity Company, said Ould Bechir in a speech delivered at the ceremony.

He recalled the country’s objective to increase the contribution of renewable energy sources to the national energy package by 15% in 2015 and 20% in 2020.

The commissioning of the wind energy plant took place in the presence of ministers in charge of energy of the member countries of the Organization for Development of the River Senegal (OMVS).