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Niger-focused Savannah Petroleum is in talks to acquire the oil and gas assets of Nigeria’s Seven Energy, which has run into financial difficulties related to the closure of the Forcados terminal and non-payment for its gas supply to power stations. Savannah said on 13 July that it had entered into a binding exclusivity agreement in relation to the potential acquisition.Savannah has exploration acreage in Niger, where it plans a first well in August.

The High Commission for the Development of the Niger Valley (HCAVN) has extended the deadline for bidders to prequalify for the supply of equipment for the Kandadji hydroelectric plant. The services include manufacturing, transport, assembly, testing and commissioning of equipment for the plant on the Niger River, and training of personnel. Bids are now due by 1 August, extended from 19 July.

The High Commission for the Development of the Niger Valley (HCAVN) has invited prequalification bids by 19 July from equipment suppliers for the 130MW Kandadji hydropower plant on the Niger River, and by 20 July from consultants to provide project management services for the construction of a 132kV double-circuit transmission line between the plant and Niamey.The equipment contract, part financed by the World Bank’s International Development Association and the Agence Française de Développement, involves the supply, installation, testing and commissioning of equipment for the plant as well as the training of its operating staff.

Société Nigérienne d’Electricité (Nigelec) invites prequalification applications by 14 July for the turnkey design, supply, installation and commissioning of a solar photovoltaic-diesel hybrid project in the city of Agadez. On commissioning, the contractor will be required to operate and maintain the power plant for two years before handing over to Nigelec, according to a procurement notice published on 5 June.

The Ministry of Energy plans to recruit a consultant to help draw up a green mini-grid policy. The project has financial and technical support from the African Development Bank through the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa. The project aims to help improve access to clean, sustainable and affordable energy for all Nigerien households. It will define a policy and regulatory framework to promote and stimulate private investment in order to double the capacity of existing systems or to install new renewable mini-grids.

President Mahamadou Issoufou on 2 April inaugurated the 80MW first phase of the Gorou Banda diesel power plant, to improve supply to Niamey and reduce dependence on the interconnection with Nigeria. The project was financed by the government, the West African Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank at a cost of CFA75.4bn.The plant, located 5km south of Niamey with four 20MW diesel turbines, was built by Sinohydro, which started construction in April 2013. The construction of lines and substations was carried out by Chinese company TBEA.

London-based Savannah Petroleum has said that the focus of its initial three-well drilling campaign will be on the R3 contract area, which it says sits within a proven petroleum “sweet spot” in the Agadem Rift Basin, with some of the largest discoveries located in adjacent areas to the north and south, including producing fields operated by China National Petroleum Corporation. The R3 area is also close to existing and planned infrastructure in the basin.

Savannah Petroleum announced on 15 March that it has signed a letter of award with Great Wall Drilling Company for GWDC rig 89. The letter provides for a programme of three firm wells, and includes options for a further six wells. The rig is in Niger, and drilling is expected to start during H1 2017. Savannah has issued purchase orders for long-lead items including casing and wellheads.

Oil minister Foumakoye Gado has defended the cost of fuel as one of the lowest in the region, following renewed pressure from transport unions and civil society groups for a price cut.Campaigners argue that fuel should be cheaper as Niger produces its own oil. However, in a series of mid-February interviews on local radio and television, Gado said refining costs also had to be taken into account.

The government has inaugurated a strategic steering committee for the nuclear power programme, which was established by a decree from the prime minster, Brigi Rafini, on 23 November 2016. Rafini will chair the committee, which is charged with examining and guiding policies and strategies for the implementation of projects, and with overseeing the national technical committee.“The interrelated issues of energy security, climate change and the development of our natural resources must inform and enlighten us in the search for ways and means to facilitate people’s access to sustainable energy services, guarantee energy security, and build a dynamic and competitive industrial sector,” Rafini said in a speech to the inauguration ceremony.

London-based Savannah Petroleum plans to start exploration drilling in H1 2017, following completion of an 800km2 3D seismic survey over part of the R3 area. Announcing its first-half results on 27 September, Savannah said the survey by BGP Niger aimed to provide enhanced definition over 12 existing mapped exploration targets and to identify new targets not mapped on existing 2D seismic. Completion is expected in early 2017. Savannah, which raised $40m in a share placing on London’s AIM market in July 2016 to fund the next phase of seismic and drilling said it was talking to potential farm-in partners, and planned to hold a capital markets event in Niger in November.

The African Development Bank-administered Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (Sefa) in July approved a grant of $994,270 to promote green minigrids. Niger aims to provide 15% of rural access to electricity using offgrid and minigrid systems by 2020. The Sefa-supported programme, which will be implemented by the National Directorate for Renewable and Domestic Energy, is expected to invest $10m in renewable energy projects by 2018. It will prepare green minigrid policy and a regulatory framework to facilitate private sector involvement by providing support to the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum.

London-based Savannah Petroleum has raised $40m through a share placing and subscription on London’s AIM market. A total of 79,835,682 new shares were placed at 38p/share, and directors and senior management subscribed for another 1,444,318 shares. Savannah plans to acquire 3D seismic on the R3 contract area and drill a first well in 2017.Savannah holds the R1/R2 and R3/R4 contract areas in the Agadem Rift Basin, south-east Niger. The blocks cover an area of about 13,655km2, representing about half of the original Agadem permit relinquished by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) in July 2013.

The government held a meeting with financing partners on 12 July in Niamey to discuss measures to revive the Kandadji hydropower and irrigation project, which was delayed by cancellation of the original construction contract for non-performance. The meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Brigi Rafini, brought together representatives of the African Development Bank (AfDB), the World Bank, the Agence Française de Développement, the Opec Fund for International Development, the Niger Basin Authority, the Saudi Development Fund, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, the Ecowas Bank for Investment and Development, the Islamic Development Bank and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development.

China Railway International Group has said that construction of a 132kV transmission line from the Société de Raffinage de Zinder (Soraz) refinery to Zinder, Maradi and Malbaza will be finished in three months. The Chinese company is building the line under a contract awarded by Société Nigérienne d’Electricité (Nigelec). The line is intended to take surplus power from the refinery and supply it to the Nouvelle Cimenterie du Niger cement plant which is being built at Malbaza. The transmission project is being financed with a $73.3m concessional loan from the Export-Import Bank of China signed in November 2013.