Scatec’s Release to expand Cameroon solar-plus-storage projects

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
release by scatec
Release by Scatec will expand its Maroua and Guider projects, which it commissioned in 2023. Image: Release by Scatec.

Release, the distributed power arm of Norwegian renewable energy company Scatec, has unveiled plans to add 28.6MW of solar capacity and 19.2MWh of battery energy storage systems (BESS) to its portfolio in Cameroon.

The company has signed two new lease agreements with ENEO, a partially state-owned electricity company in Cameroon, to expand its Maroua and Guider projects, which it commissioned last September. The expansion will increase the size of Release’s Cameroonian portfolio to 64.6MW of solar capacity, alongside 38.2MWh of batteries, and follows a US$26 million investment made into the projects.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

“This extension is a testimony to the success of the initial projects and to the benefits provided by our innovative offering,” said Release CEO Hans Olav Kvalvaag. “By increasing the installed capacity in the country, we are reaffirming our collaboration with ENEO and our commitment to Cameroon as a key market for our solutions.”

The two projects were initially developed alongside African engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) firms Izuba Energy and Sphinx Energy. The next round of expansion work will be partially funded by Climate Fund Managers, a Dutch investment group, which reached an agreement to provide Release with US$102 million in financing last July, in exchange for a 32% ownership stake.

Release aims to provide flexible leasing for pre-assembled solar modules and battery storage facilities, and its continued work in the African solar and storage sectors is an important proof of concept for Scatec. Cameroon’s energy industry is heavily reliant on waste and fossil fuels, with the International Energy Agency (IEA) reporting that, in 2021, biofuels and waste accounted for 55.3% of the country’s domestic energy production, while crude oil accounted for 27.3%.

The news follows South Africa’s commissioning of the continent’s largest solar-plus-storage plant, with a solar generation capacity of 540MW, earlier this year, as interest in the African solar-plus-storage sector grows.

Read Next

February 11, 2025
Located in the solar hotbed region of Atacama in northern Chile, the Domeyko project will have an 83MW solar PV capacity and 660MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity.
February 10, 2025
South Australia-based solar PV developer Green Gold Energy has received consent from the South Australian government for a 200MW solar-plus-storage site.
February 6, 2025
Samsung C&T Renewable Energy Australia has submitted a 250MW solar-plus-BESS site in New South Wales to the Australian government’s EPBC Act.
February 5, 2025
Investment in pan-European solar portfolios have become ‘narrow and deep’ rather than ‘broad and shallow’, according to speakers at SFIEU 2025.
February 4, 2025
Growing hybridisation and co-location of renewable power projects and storage facilities could strengthen revenue in Europe’s power sector.
February 3, 2025
Scatec has registered a consolidated revenue of NOK1.15 billion for the last quarter of 2024, down from the same period a year prior.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
February 17, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
February 19, 2025
Tokyo, Japan
Solar Media Events
March 11, 2025
Frankfurt, Germany