Is Sierra Leone missing out on the viable Infinitum’s 189 million dollars Energy project?

Freetown | 1st January 2024 | Vertex Media

Sierra Leone, a nation facing a low power supply, is on the verge of missing out on an opportunity to benefit from the Infinitum Energy Group‘s 30 megawatts of clean electricity from ‘waste to energy’.

The project has been around the corridors of the relevant government institutions for its possible implementation to help salvage the everlasting electricity supply challenge in the country, especially the Freetown municipality and its surroundings. However, little or no progress has been recorded so far, with a presumable resistance from some stakeholders in stalling the process, despite the several meetings and engagements with government authorities.

The Infinitum Energy Group project seeks to provide 30 megawatts of electricity to the Western Area by transforming wastes to energy. This biomass energy project is a first of its kind to seek to ensure energy independence, where it will not depend on fossil fuels to operate it.

The project comes with enormous benefits to the country.

On job creation, Infinitum will directly and indirectly employ over 1,000 Sierra Leoneans who will either work in the production area or in the waste management and collection . Youth will become SMEs, collecting waste on behalf of the company.

On electricity supply, the Freetown and the Western Rural will benefit from a 30 megawatts of electricity supply. The Waste-to-Energy project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted energy generation and supply to the Western Area.

On community social responsibilities, the company will set aside a whopping sum of 3.6 million dollars on solving social issues in the communities of operation. The fund will be used in diverse programs, including health, education, road maintenance, water supply, etc.

On investment, Infinitum Energy Group will be investing a mega sum of 189 million dollars into the Sierra Leone economy. This will ensure direct foreign investment, adding to the country’s foreign exchange reserve.

Another key benefit that this project brings is the health benefit. With Infinitum’s intention to collect all wastes and clear the biggest dumpsites (Kingtom, Kissy, and Waterloo dumpsites), there will be an improvement in the sanitation and cleanliness of the Freetown, thereby eradicating existing diseases, like malaria and cholera.

The above benefits have shown that this is the most valuable energy project that simultaneously solves other existing issues. It has already attracted public attention and interest, calling for its approval and implementation to add to the Freetown power grid.

In September 2023, the CEO of Infinitum Energy Group Lindsay Nagle met with President Julius Maada Bio and other government officials in New York during the United Nations General Assembly meeting. This meeting gave a renewed hope of seeing the project come to light.

The President expressed his government’s willingness to support the project in the presence of top government officials, including the Chairman of the Special Initiative On Climate Change, Food Security and Renewable Energy, Dr. Kandeh Kolleh Yumkella.

Sadly, after the September meeting in New York, the key government institutions have not made progress in the process leading to its approval in Parliament, and its eventual implementation. The fate of this amazing project is in a quagmire, which threatens it closure, thereby depriving Sierra Leone, especially Freetown, of a sustainable energy solution.

The current status of the project is disappointing, especially when one of the President’s agendas is to increase energy generation and supply, job creation, etc, of which Infinitum is well placed to support the government in those agendas.

Unfortunately, it’s over three (3) years down the drain, no expressed efforts from the government to bring this project to light. With the current state of the country’s power supply, it remain unclear what the future holds for the Infinitum Energy project.

The question now is, can Sierra Leone afford to lose this viable energy project?

By Ibrahim Sorious Samura