Chad’s Ministry of Water and Energy has launched one of the first tenders under the country's new national development plan – Chad Connection 2030 – launched in mid-November at the UAE-Chad Trade & Investment Forum held in the UAE.

The tender concerns the opening up of the country’s electricity sector to private players and covers the construction, operation, maintenance and management of standalone solar systems and decentralised electricity networks, mini-grids and/or metro-grids in medium-sized localities.

The aim is to expand access to reliable and affordable electricity, particularly in secondary cities and rural areas, which has been identified as a critical pillar of the Chad Connection 2030 plan. The tender was launched on 13 November and firms are invited to express interest within the next few weeks and can access more information on the website of the Ministry of Water and Energy and the Ministry of Finance, Budget, Plan and International Cooperation.

The project requires an investment of US$120 million in its initial phase, with a US$60 million grant from the World Bank and US$60 million in private sector investment. The initiative will leverage the World Bank’s Scaling Mini Grids (SMG) platform, which offers a turnkey solution combining IFC, World Bank and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) services to enable a rapid and scalable deployment of mini-grids through public-private partnerships (PPP). This is in line with the multi-nation Mission 300 electrification programme backed by the World Bank and other development finance institutions.

At the UAE-Chad Trade & Investment Forum, the government managed to secure US$20.5 billion in investments from public and private partners out of the US$30 billion targeted to facilitate the Chad Connection 2030 plan’s pipeline of high-priority schemes. The event saw 2,000 participants including the president of Togo, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi and the prime minister of Niger.

Of the total, US$16.4 billion was pledged by 30 international donors and multilateral development banks, including the World Bank, Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), African Development Bank (AfDB), Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) and African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank).

Private investors, most of them international, signed 40 deals and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) covering the sectors of energy, agriculture, mining, textiles, tourism, education and industrialisation, which contributed a combined US$4.1 billion.

Chad’s President Mahamat Itno said the US$30 billion target was achievable since the five-year plan had already mobilised US$20.5 billion in funding in its first year.

“This forum is a real construction site – the construction site of Chad’s future that we want to build, hand in hand, with investors from Chad and around the world,” the head of state said at the plan’s launch. “To make this a reality, I call for the resolute pursuit of reforms, including those aimed at reducing bureaucracy and significantly improving the business climate.”

Deals signed at the Chad Connection 2030 plan’s launch include a flurry of agreements inked in the electricity sector, with the government looking to ensure a ~60% electricity access rate and 90% access rate in provincial capitals (compared with 11% in 2022); 866MW of additional installed capacity, including 520MW of solar power; and a 20-30% share of renewable energies in the energy mix (compared with 9% in 2024).

The energy ministry signed an MoU with the UAE’s Global South Utilities (GSU) covering the:
- Construction of a 180MW thermal power plant that will run on heavy fuel oil (HFO) in tandem with the development of the second 225kV/90kV/33kV transmission line in the capital Ndjamena;
- Installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) power plants with a capacity of 12MWc and 12MW of battery energy storage system (BESS), with six to be constructed in Sarh and Abeche in the first phase and similar facilities to be built in Am Timan, Bardai, Massenya and Goz Beida in the second;

In addition, GSU pledged to collaborate with the Chadian authorities to build national capacity and train young professionals in the field of renewable energy.

Moreover, an MoU worth US$227 million is believed to have been inked with China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) for the construction of an electricity transport and distribution network in Ndjamena.

Pan-African renewable energy developer Axian Energy and the local Green Energy Solutions, meanwhile, signed an MoU for the development of a 100MW PV plant with a 50MWh BESS in Ndjamena, while ERDERD will install a 105MWc HFO thermal power facility and Volterra another 150MW HFO plant in the capital.

In addition, France’s Enerso committed to building and operating a 50MW diesel and solar power plant distributed between Bongor, Fada and Sarh. Finally, a protocol of agreement was signed for the construction of a solar plant and the creation of a solar panel manufacturing plant, a first in Chad.

In the water sector, two agreements were signed: the first was signed with Al-Rukn Engineering Consulting Society, which specialises in technical studies and planning; the second agreement was with China’s CGCOC Group, which is already involved in several major hydraulic projects in the country.

For the transport industry, an MoU was signed with AD Ports Group, which is majority owned by Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ, for the construction of dry ports in Chad, the first of which will be opened in Moundou at a cost of more than US$40 million. The Chad Connection 2030 plan aims to use PPPs to build six dry ports for international trade, including one at Toukra to relieve congestion at Ngueli. The government is also looking to digitalise and optimise the national logistics chain.

Other projects presented by the Ministry of Transport, Civil Aviation and National Meteorology at the UAE-Chad forum, include the new international airport in Djermaya and the rehabilitation of five other airports; the development of river and rail transport to connect the country to major regional markets; and a comprehensive upgrade of the road network.

According to the government, Chad boasts a strategic geographical position at the intersection of West Africa, the Maghreb, Central Africa and East Africa, making it a nerve centre for trade, logistics and investment, as well as a strategic crossroads for major African road corridors. This position presents an opportunity to develop land, air, river, rail and lake infrastructures, strengthen the country's connectivity and structure intra-African trade corridors to ensure Chad becomes the logistics hub of the continent.

In addition, the transport ministry signed a memorandum of cooperation with Turkish port infrastructure and logistics firm Erdem Group targeted at optimising the port transit of Chadian goods passing through Cameroon, particularly through the ports of Douala and Kribi.

The agreement aims to establish a sustainable partnership framework to strengthen the Chadian logistics chain, with Erdem Group committing to developing the necessary infrastructure, reducing transit times and ensuring transparent and efficient port planning. The deal will be implemented over the course of two years in close coordination with the Cameroonian port authorities and shipowners, under the supervision of the Chadian Shippers' Council (COC-Tchad).

Top photo: UAE-Chad Trade & Investment Forum (Source: Facebook @ Chad energy ministry)