(Ecofin Agency) - The Ivorian government plans to build a power plant running under cocoa biomass. The facility, set to have a 60-70 MW capacity, will be the first project of the sort in the country. It is designed to add 424 MW to the national grid thanks to the cocoa biomass.

Côte d’Ivoire, which is the world’s leading cocoa producer, produces up to 2 million tons of the beans per annum. In turn, thousands of tons of pods are burned after harvests.

The project will be implemented in Divo region (South-East). It is backed by the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), which has already awarded nearly $1 million for feasibility studies. The organization also supports 3 other energy projects, including a hydro plant in Kokumbo, and two smart grid projects.

Let’s mention that in Côte d'Ivoire, energy demand increases by 10% each year. The country aims to bring electricity capacity to 4000 MW by 2020, from 2275 MW currently.

Gwladys Johnson Akinocho