His Excellency Julius Maada Bio, the President of Sierra Leone, launched the Energy Transition and Green Growth Planon 4th November 2024 at the Climate Resilience and Energy Transition Dialogue in Sierra Leone.
The plan marks a significant step in achieving universal energy access and economic development in Sierra Leone with a target of 100% electrification by 2040, while also establishing the country’s environmental stewardship. It strives for economic growth across key sectors like power, transport, industry, buildings, appliances, and agriculture.
The plan was developed under the guidance of the Presidential Initiative on Climate Change, Renewable Energy and Food Security (PI-CREF) and the Ministry of Energy, with support from Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and Bloomberg Philanthropies.
440
of mini-grids & grid reinforcements for 100% electrification by 2040
4.8 bn
USD fuel savings compared to the baseline
39 bn
USD total capital investments up to 2050
29,117
total number of jobs by 2050
Key Highlights:
- The plan outlines a Low Carbon Development pathway, supporting a range of public policy objectives, including the Feed Salone Strategy, the National Development Plan, the National Electrification and Clean Cooking Strategies, and Sierra Leone's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). This green growth future envisions a shift away from reliance on biomass and oil, with increasing shares of hydropower and solar PV.
- Currently the country has an installed power capacity of 0.3 GW. Achieving 100% electrification by 2040 (11 million people to be electrified) will require 440 MW in total of mini-grids (132 MW), solar home systems (13 MW) and grid reinforcements (295 MW). By 2050, approximately 4.5 GW of hydropower and solar-based grid capacity, along with 2.5 GW for transmission and distribution (T&D), will be needed to power the country.
- The Low Carbon plan will require a total capital investment of ~39 Bn USD up to 2050 across the various sectors (power 28%, transport 62%), 55% more than the baseline, while leading to fuel savings of 4.8 Bn USD compared to baseline.
- Although total capital investments are higher in the Low Carbon pathway than the baseline, this will lead to approximately 30,000 jobs to be created by 2050, more than double the number projected under the baseline scenario.
