Gambia's National Water and Electricity Company (NAWEC) signed an agreement with South Africa's Eskom in June 2000. Eskom was to acquire a 50% stake in NAWEC and participate in a $75-million investment program to overhaul NAWEC generating plants over the next five years. The agreement, which was to include financing from the World Bank, fell through three months later.
In October 2000, the 14 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), of which Gambia is a member, signed an agreement to launch a project to boost power supply in the region of West Africa. The West African Power Pool (WAPP) agreement reaffirmed the decision to develop energy production facilities and interconnect their respective electricity grids. According to the agreement, the WAPP will be accomplished in two phases but is planned to be fully implemented by 2005. Gambia, along with countries such as Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, will actively be involved in the second phase of the WAPP agreement. Under the agreement, WAPP is expected to harmonize the regulatory framework that governs the electricity sector in each member country.
In December 2000 the African Development Bank (AfDB) awarded a $3.8-million loan to finance a rural electrification project in Gambia. The project consists of construction of six power stations (combined capacity of 6.2 MW), the installation of 141 miles (227 km) of transmission and distribution lines to supply power to 46 towns and villages. The total cost of the rural electrification project is estimated at $19 million, with the additional financing coming from international donors.
The AfDB has also issued a $2.13 million grant to finance the study on electricity production and transmission to the member states of the Organization for the Development of the River Gambia (OMVG), a regional organization whose members are Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Senegal. The study aims to strengthen regional integration of OMVG member states in the energy sector, particularly in the electricity sub-sector. A feasibility study of the Sambangalou hydroelectric project on the Gambia River, and the interconnection network project linking the facility to the distribution networks of the four countries will be conducted.
