Thursday, November 19, 2020 was a day full of activities for the Minister of Energy, Mr. Dona Jean-Claude HOUSSOU. This day began with a workshop to launch and operationalize the National Framework for Gender and Social Inclusion in the energy sector in Benin, the opening ceremony of which, chaired by the Minister of Energy, took place. held at Benin Royal Hotel in Cotonou.
Benin has signed international agreements to ensure greater gender equality in development actions and has adopted a national gender promotion policy, the action plan of which has already expired. In 2018, a group of women and men matured the idea of setting up a consultation framework on issues of gender and social inclusion in connection with the energy sector. This project has reached cruising speed thanks to Minister Dona Jean-Claude HOUSSOU. A decree was issued on December 26, 2018 establishing the National Framework for Gender and Social Inclusion in the energy sector. On May 21, 2019, the Gender Development Unit was installed at the Ministry of Energy.
For Dona Jean-Claude HOUSSOU, these institutional and operational actions demonstrate that her ministry is convinced of the added value of taking gender and social inclusion into account in the sector and is determined to go very far so that no one not be left out in access to energy in Benin. “The National Framework for Gender and Social Inclusion in the energy sector will lead in synergy with all other actors / trices concrete actions to highlight the consideration of gender concerns and social inclusion in the energy sector in Benin ”declared the Minister. He then hoped that the consultation framework would contribute effectively to improving access to energy for all, including the underprivileged groups, with a view to reducing gender inequality, etc.
After launching and operationalizing the National Framework for Gender and Social Inclusion in the energy sector, Minister Dona Jean-Claude HOUSSOU went to the Plateau department, more precisely to Illoulofin, in the municipality of Pobè , for the launch of the construction of a Photovoltaic Solar Power Plant in Benin with a capacity of 25 Megawatts. This project, which is part of the DEFISSOL project, is funded by the European Union, the French Development Agency (AFD) and the SBEE. The launch ceremony, chaired by the Minister of Energy, took place in the presence of the President of the National Assembly, Mr. Louis VLAVONOU, and the technical and financial partners.
According to the Project Coordinator, Mr. Ninon AHOUDJINOU, the 25 Megawatt Photovoltaic Solar Power Plant to be erected in Illoulofin will be built on a 96 ha estate belonging to the SBEE. It consists of a solar field made up of Photovoltaic panels using crystalline silicon technology. They will be framed and mounted on fixed structures with 6 transformer stations and a global underground network. The electrical architecture of the Plant will be based on “String” type inverters and the Plant will be connected to the CEB Post source of Onigbolo by a 20 KV medium voltage line with a length of 2.5 km. will also have at the Onigbolo station source, a 20 KV / 161 KV step-up transformer with a power of 50 MVA.
At a total cost of 12.7 billion FCFA, the construction work of this Photovoltaic Solar Power Plant will be carried out by the EIFFAGE RMT Consortium for a contractual period of 15 months. The EIFFAGE RMT Consortium, selected after an international call for tenders, will be responsible for the detailed design, construction, operation and maintenance of the Plant during the first three years of operation. From an environmental and social standpoint, the people affected by the project will be compensated. Livelihood restoration measures and the construction of community infrastructure are planned.
The Minister of Energy, Dona Jean-Claude HOUSSOU, informed the populations that this plant, as soon as it is built, will have a production cost of 34 FCFA / KWh. This cost turns out to be the lowest of all existing production sources in the territory, hence its great importance in our energy mix. He invited the company EIFFAGE RMT to do everything to meet the contractual deadline so that Benin can benefit from the first kWh taken out of the solar power plant in 2021.
Source: benin goverment
