According to Gabonreview, citing an interview given to the daily L'Union, the interim administrator of the Gabon Energy and Water Company (SEEG), Steeve Saurel Legnongo, said on 20 February 2025 that the company will pay 1.8 billion CFA francs a month for the supply of 70 MW, not 15 billion as reported in some media. The amount stems from the memorandum of understanding signed on 15 February 2025 between SEEG, the State and the Turkish group Karpowership. The State covers the fuel, and Karpowership committed to switch to natural gas within two months of signing. A 70 MW floating power plant was then in its test phase.
According to Gabonmediatime, the contract was scaled down after three-way negotiations: the first agreement provided for 150 MW at 12 billion CFA francs a month. The outlet reports that the Energy Minister, Seraphin Akure-Davain, reportedly also stated that the protocol commits the State and SEEG only up to 1.8 billion CFA francs a month.
Gabonreview reports that, according to the SEEG head, no structural investment has been made in 20 years even though consumption almost doubled between 2010 and 2024. A 2019 EDF audit of the whole power system estimated at 475 billion CFA francs the investment needed to renew ageing installations. Thermal generating units are on average 30 years old and hydropower units 50 years old. SEEG is continuing to install an ACCC conductor on the 90 kV Owendo-Bissegue line and is negotiating a 150 MW onshore power plant as a joint venture under a BOOT (build, own, operate, transfer) model.
