–LEC Signs Landmark Agreement with CI Energies and CIE
On Monday, February 24, 2025 the Government of the Republic of Liberia, through the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC), successfully signed a power purchase agreement for 2025 through 2027 at the headquarters of CI-Energies in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire. The LEC delegation, led by Thomas Z. Gonkerwon (Interim Managing Director) followed by Cllr. Emmanuel A. Tulay (Chairman, Board of Directors), Adam Sheriff (Head, Finance), Cllr. Malayan Keita-Brown (Head, Legal Services) and Verity Neufville-Sonkarlay (Manager, Communications), Tomah Seh Floyd, Sr. (CEO, Jungle Energy Power) and Maissa Diagne (CEO Albedo/Libenergy) was received with a warm welcome.
The Interim Managing Director extended words of appreciation to the management of both CIE and CI-Energies for their unflinching support to the energy sector of Liberia. He acknowledged the series of discussions held with the two institutions and highlighted that by agreeing to supply Liberia energy, even before all the legal arrangements, CIE and CI-Energies have shown a sign of brotherhood and that of African solidarity.
LEC’s Power Purchase Arrangement (PPA) with CI Energies and CIE remains a commercial agreement for the purchase and supply of electricity, which has over the years provided capacity for LEC to meet its energy demand. Through the newly signed PPA, LEC’s contracted supply is 50 megawatts of electricity from its Ivorian counterparts.
DJAHA Kouadio Ambroise, Asset Manager at CI-Energies, welcomed the Liberian delegation and appreciated the LEC for always making efforts to abide by the terms of the agreements. In the same vein, he informed the LEC of the technical challenges that CI-Energies has been faced with since last year, which has reduced its production.
According to CI Energies, the PPA is for a 3-year term and is renewable. “All parties will have to respect their role as per the agreement in order to make it sustainable,” said Noumory Sidibe, Director General of CI Energies. He further stated that for CI Energies and CIE to continue to effectively supply LEC the power that they need LEC must continue to be in good standing. “By this we all would have respected the terms and conditions of this agreement,” Director General Sidibe stated.
Gonkerwon assured his Ivorian counterparts that the Government of Liberia (GOL) has prioritized the energy sector and has instructed the LEC to install prepaid meter at all government institutions, except medical facilities. By doing this electricity will now be used effectively and efficiently. He affirmed that electricity serves as a catalyst for economic growth, hence the LEC has embarked on a mission to connect more large users, for example the industrial park along the Somalia Drive whose demand is around 27 megawatts, and the industrial freezone.
As Liberia prepares to meet its future energy needs, LEC has initiated a solar farm project, which is expected to go live in October 2025, the repair of Unit 1 at the Mount Coffee Hydro Power Plant, also expected to be completed in 2025, and an expansion of the Mount Coffee Hydro Power Plant by two additional turbines. “Whilst there are plans on the way for more investment in green energy, our short-term plan is to increase our thermal capacity, which normally comes in during the dry season, to boost the generation from Mount Coffee. The LEC management is confident that the country is getting closer to its national goal of increasing access to electricity for all Liberians. With the growing demand for electricity, the LEC management is encouraging all its customers currently connected to the national grid to use electricity efficiently and avoid wasteful consumption,” Gonkerwon observed.
