China will grant Mali a loan of about 69.1 billion CFAF to enable the West African nation finance its hydro-electric project in Gouina, near Kayes, in the Western region, the Malian government indicated in a statement here Thursday.
The project, which is meant to meet the increasing electric energy needs of the Malian populations, consists of setting up a dam, a 140-MW hydro-electric factory which is capable of producing 620 GWH/year.
It will also be used for the renovation of facilities at the cement factory at Diamou and for the establishment of a high-tension line, of 225 kilovolts, linking the Gouina and Médine plants.
When completed, the project, with the participation of Senegal and Mauritania, will help reduce the energy deficits which member countries of the Organization for the Valorization of the Senegal River (OMVS) are facing.
The loan agreement was signed on 4 January in Dakar between the Malian government and the Import-Export bank (EXIM-BANK) of China
