On Sunday, the General Electricity Company of Libya (GECOL) announced the implementation of the first solar power plant in “Al-Saddadah.”
According to a statement by the company, the Al-Saddadah plant would later be connected to the public electricity network with a capacity of 500 megawatts. It is being implemented by the French energy giant, Total Energy.
This is part of the framework of cooperation between GECOL, and the Renewable Energy Agency (RNA) to “implement the strategic plan to integrate electrical capacities produced from renewable energy sources into the public electricity network.”
On 17 May, Total signed a preliminary agreement with GECOL to establish the first solar power plant in Libya, generating an estimated 152 terawatt-hours annually.
GECOL’s Chairman; We’am Al-Abdali, RNA’s Chairman; Abdel-Salam Al-Ansary, and Total’s Regional Director for the Middle East attended the inauguration ceremony.
Last year, Al-Abdali said the project was the first, and largest of its kind in Libya. In turn, Al-Ansary stressed that they “seek to keep pace with development, and exploit clean energy sources.”
Total has been present in Libya since 1954. In 2021, the company’s oil production was 84,000 bpd.
Libya has been in chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The county has for years been split between rival administrations, each backed by rogue militias and foreign governments.
The current stalemate grew out of the failure to hold elections in December 2021, and the refusal of Prime Minister Abdel-Hamid Dbaiba, who is leading the transitional government, to step down. In response, the country’s eastern-based Parliament appointed a rival Prime Minister, Fathi Bashagha, who has for months sought to install his government in Tripoli.