Orange has joined forces with Engie to transform its Ivory Coast, Tier III-certified GOS (Groupement Orange Services) data center and install solar panels. The site, located in Grand Bassam, Côte d'Ivoire, was first built in 2016, spanning 16,600 sqm (179,000 sq ft).
This project comes in response to the Government of the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire's sustainability goals to make the country the sub-region's energy hub by 2030 with 42% of renewables in the energy mix.
Through the project, 784 photovoltaic cells will be installed, which will provide the data center with an estimated 527 MWh/year of renewable energy. This will cover nearly 60% of the facility's daytime (7 am - 6 pm) consumption, according to the company.
Speaking about the partnership, Alioune Ndiaye, Chairman and CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa said: "This project is a first in West Africa for Orange in terms of its size and scope and it perfectly illustrates our ambition to speed up our solar projects in order to achieve net zero carbon by 2040. In the rest of Africa and the Middle East we have already implemented several initiatives, as equipping 5,400 telecoms sites by solar panels and building solar farms in Jordan and Mali. We intend to go further."
