Oct 05, 2015 President Alpha Conde of the republic of Guinea recently inaugurated the Kaleta Hydroelectric dam. The event was also attended by the presidents of Niger republic and Congo, Mahamadou Issoufou and Denis Sassou Nguesso.
According to officials, the Kaleta power plant, which has a 240 MW capacity, is expected to expand the national power grid to accommodate more users. Going by a recent World Bank data, only a quarter of Guineas have access to the national grid.
Speaking during the inauguration, President Conde expressed his happiness over the new project, which he says will also create employment opportunities.
“We will not be producing electricity just for Guinea. The electricity that will be generated at this power plant will enable to develop the metal and steel industries along with our friends Niger, which has a large consumption of electricity, as well as in Congo and so on,”
Although the plant will primarily service the country’s capital, its establishment has increased hope that the government’s effort to expand the grid’s access is on the right track.
Alpha Nangoura, Chief of the Boumayah district, where the power plant is based said:
“We are happy about this new project in Kaleta. It was announced a few years ago and now can see the results, thanks to Alpha Conde. This brings a lot of joy to the people of Guinea. Kaleta represents a bright spark for Guinea and for Africa,”
Residents of the Boumayah district also expressed their excitement over the project.
“Our husbands helped build this dam and they did it in difficult conditions. We heard all sorts of rumours about the difficulties associated in building it, but today the results are here and we are very happy,”
President Conde, who is running for a second term in office, has pledged to complete a 500-megwatt hydroelectric dam at Souapiti on the Konjoure river should he be given the mandate again.