Work starts on the Sambangalou hydroelectric dam

9 January 2023 - New contracts - Senegal

A 108 m-high reservoir with a capacity of 4 billion m3 and an installed capacity of 128 MW: these are the headline figures for the future dam being erected by VINCI Construction Grands Projets and VINCI Construction Terrassement Grands Projets near Kédougou, in the south of Senegal, which will produce renewable energy and irrigate 90,000 hectares of agricultural land downstream.

The preparatory works were launched in late September, paving the way for four years of construction work. The preservation of biodiversity is an absolute priority on this worksite: it includes measures to preserve the habitat of chimpanzees as well as the Niokolo-Koba National Park, one of the last sanctuaries for wild animals in West Africa. Furthermore, local low-carbon materials will be used for hardwall buildings in the site’s life base. This site will mobilise nearly 1,200 people at peak activity.