Azito Power Project

completed

Summary Of Project Information (SPI)Project NameCôte d''Ivoire: Azito Power ProjectRegionSub-Saharan AfricaSectorProject No008503Projected Board DateJune 18, 1998Company NameCinergy, S.A.Technical Partner and/or Major Shareholders ABB Energy Ventures, a subsidiary of ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd. of Switzerland; Industrial Promotion Services (Côte d''Ivoire) S.A., a unit of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development; and Electricité de France, the French national electricity utility. Project Cost Including proposed IFC investment The cost for the first two phases of the project, which includes 2 x 150MW simple cycle gas turbine generators and a transmission line reinforcement component, is currently estimated at US$215 million. The proposed IFC investment consists of: (i) a senior IFC ''A'' Loan of up to US$35 million, (ii) a senior IFC ''B'' Loan of up to US$35 million; (iii) an IFC Quasi Equity investment of up to US$9 million; (iv) an IFC Equity subscription of up to US$2 million; and, (v) optional risk management and/or backstopping facilities of up to US$5 million equivalent. Location of project and Description of site The project is located at Azito on the Ebrie Lagoon, in the Yopougon district about 10km southwest of downtown Abidjan. The 70,600 sq.m. project site is on undeveloped land, remote from any densely populated area and at proximity to Abidjan''s 225kV transmission ring. Description of Company and Purpose of Project The project is to build, own, operate and eventually transfer a 450MW nominal gas-fired power station to be implemented in three 150MW phases. Financing is currently being arranged for the first two 150MW phases only. Cinergy is a private special purpose company that will provide power to the Ivorian electricity utility under a 23-year Concession Agreement. The project will initially increase domestic generation capacity by about 30%, meeting the severe power shortage otherwise anticipated in 2000. Using offshore natural gas as fuel, Cinergy will be one of the lowest cost generators in Africa, and will enable Côte d''Ivoire to attract industrial investment and sustain its strong economic growth. IFC is playing a key role in structuring the financing, and through the proposed IFC ''B'' Loan will provide the first commercial bank financing for private infrastructure in Sub-Saharan Africa.Environmental Category and Issues This is a category A project under IFC''s environmental review procedure. Environmental issues associated with the project include siting considerations, stack emissions and air quality impacts, liquid effluent and water intake, noise, socio-economic impacts including resettlement of people, construction of associated facilities such as transmission lines and a gas pipeline, and occupational health and safety. The Environmental Assessment and the Resettlement Plan (three families from the plant site, and about 130 families with regard to the right-of-way acquisition of the transmission line) were prepared including the results of public consultations. These documents were released to World Bank InfoShop in April 1998. The Resettlement Plan was released to the InfoShop with the proviso that organizational responsibilities, implementation schedule, and budget be provided in more detail by the end of May 1998. The use of natural gas will result in inherently low SOx and particulate emissions. The main stack height will be 30m (50m for the combined-cycle 3rd phase). Various noise control measures including an acoustic enclosure, silencers, and a tree screen will be applied. The closed-circuit cooling water system (for the combined-cycle 3rd phase) with cooling towers will minimize the amount of water-intake. The transmission line route (16km) was selected from four alternative routes in consideration of minimizing social impacts. An Environmental Assessment for the associated gas pipeline is being carried out by a gas supplier under contract to the Government. No relocation of homes or significant disruption of people is anticipated.The are from the Infoshop.Host country location of environmental documentsCynergy Cocody Danga Nord, Rue B49Face a l''Ambassade du GabonAbidjan, Côte d''IvoireMinistere du Logement, du Cadre de Vie et de l''EnvironmentBP 153 Abidjan, Côte d''IvoireMairie de YopougonYopougon, Abidjan, Côte d''IvoireDate SPI sent to InfoshopMay 15, 1998“This Summary of Project Information is prepared and distributed to the public in advance of consideration of the proposed transaction by the Corporation’s Board of Directors. It is provided for the purpose of enhancing the transparency of IFC’s activities and should not be construed as presuming the outcome of IFC Board consideration.”For Additional Information contact: Corporate Relations Unit Telephone: (202) 473-3800Fax: (202) 974-4384Environmental documents for this project are available at http://www.ifc.org and from the World Bank InfoShop (http://www.worldbank.org/html/pic/aboutinfo.html).