Burkina Faso Solar Plan: Yeleen Project

Electricity production in Burkina Faso heavily relies on thermal power plants that use fossil fuels such as diesel and heavy fuel oil. In addition to the volatile and high costs, as well as supply disruptions, these energy sources also contribute to current environmental challenges and have highlighted the need for sustainable alternatives.

In order to support the development of solar-powered electricity projects, the National Electricity Company of Burkina Faso (SONABEL) launched a program to develop solar power plants to be connected to the interconnected electricity grid.  This project titled “Yeleen Project”, funded by the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the African Development Bank (AfDB, is a multi-component project involving the installation of 10 MW solar capacity in 3 sites (Gaoua, Diapaga and Dori), as well as the installation of 40 MW of capacity at the Ouagadougou site, including a 90 kV connection power line of around 30 km.

As part of the technical feasibility studies carried out by our technical partner IED, Antea Group's teams were mobilized for the preparation of an ESIA, comprising:  

• The scoping report, including identification of environmental and social challenges
• Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA, including ESMP and specific plans)
• Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP)
• Resettlement Action Plan (RAP)

A smartphone application was developed by Antea Group to collect field data on the socio-economic context, for both the ESIA and the RAP. This application allows the direct processing of collected data, and supports report drafting by producing relevant diagrams, maps, etc.

These studies comply with the IFC international standards.