Antananarivo, 23 April 2025 – As part of the state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, EDF Group Executive Director and CEO of EDF Renewables Béatrice Buffon signed an agreement with Amine Hiridjee, co-CEO of AXIAN Group, and Demba Diallo, Africa50 Development Director, to develop, build and operate a 120MW hydroelectric dam in Madagascar.
The Volobe dam, located in Tamatave in the north-east of the country, is a priority infrastructure project for the Malagasy government. Its electricity production, estimated at 750GWh per year (equivalent to around a third of Madagascar’s current electricity production), will help to decarbonise the country’s electricity mix. This new energy source will also help to secure the country’s power supply.
The Volobe project has the support of the Malagasy government, funding from international donors and a guarantee from the World Bank. The project is being developed in accordance with the highest environmental and social standards.
Under the terms of the agreement signed today, EDF holds a 37.5% stake in the project company, Compagnie Générale d’Hydroélectricité de Volobe (CGHV), alongside AXIAN (37.5%), a pan-African group specialising in telecoms, energy, financial services, fintech and real estate, and Africa50 (25%), an investment company set up by African countries and the African Development Bank. Drawing on its 70 years of experience in hydroelectric facilities, EDF will be responsible for the technical management of the project and will contribute its expertise across the entire value chain, both upstream (development, feasibility studies, construction) and downstream (operation).
The Volobe dam’s commission is scheduled for the end of 2030. At this date, the country’s national water and electricity company, JIRAMA, will have access to competitive electricity to supply around two million Madagascans in a context of strong growth in demand.
Commenting on the signing of the agreement, Béatrice Buffon said: « I am delighted to see EDF’s teams applying their experience in managing complex industrial projects to develop the Volobe hydroelectric project, which will provide decarbonised, reliable and competitive electricity. This project illustrates EDF’s vocation to support the energy transition of its public and private customers, in partnership with leading players and with the support of international donors. »