São Tomé and Príncipe, TECMON Energy Advance Modernisation of National Electricity Sector

A delegation from TECMON Energy, led by Dr Rajesh Ramchandra Kashyap, Vice-President for Business Development, concluded a working visit to São Tomé and Príncipe from 29 June to 2 July 2026.
The visit builds upon the Memorandum of Understanding signed in January 2026 between the Ministry of Infrastructure and Natural Resources and TECMON Energy, and marks a further step in the ongoing dialogue on structured solutions for the country’s electricity sector.
In the course of the visit, the delegation was received in audience by His Excellency, Mr Nelson Cardoso, Minister of Infrastructure and Natural Resources. The meeting provided an opportunity to review the Government’s priorities for the stabilisation, modernisation and long-term transformation of the national electricity sector.The discussions covered a comprehensive improvement programme to include the full electricity value chain generation, fuel supply, transmission, distribution, grid efficiency, metering, payment systems and revenue protection, with particular attention to increasing electricity availability and reliability, reducing technical and commercial losses, improving operational efficiency and strengthening the financial sustainability of the sector.
The delegation also held technical discussions with representatives of the Directorate-General for Natural Resources and Energy (DGRNE) and the senior management of the Water and Electricity Company (EMAE), allowing the proposed solutions to be discussed in the context of the operational and technical realities of the national power system. To this end, TECMON Energy presented an integrated, phased approach built on four pillars: a fast-track transitional power solution within 12 to 18 months; reinforcement of the transmission and distribution network; the rollout of advanced and prepaid metering together with revenue-protection systems; and structured fuel-supply and revenue mechanisms. The proposed roadmap may be structured in two or three phases over two to four years.
The Government emphasised that any proposed intervention should be aligned with São Tomé and Príncipe’s national energy strategy and ongoing electricity-sector programmes, while supporting the progressive integration of renewable energy, including solar and hydropower, and strengthening the capacity and operational sustainability of EMAE. “São Tomé and Príncipe requires a practical, integrated and bankable response to its electricity challenges,” said Dr François Sodji, President of TECMON Energy. “Our approach is not limited to adding generation capacity; it covers the full electricity value chain, from production and fuel supply to grid efficiency, metering, revenue protection and long-term financial sustainability.” He further emphasised that “any thermal solution should be understood as a bridge solution, stabilising supply in the short term while allowing the country to prepare and integrate cleaner energy sources, including hydro and solar, in future phases.”
The visit also follows earlier engagements between the national authorities, TECMON Energy and NAB Consulting, whose workstream focuses on bankable financing models that may reduce or avoid direct reliance on a sovereign guarantee while ensuring revenue security and stakeholder alignment.In this regard, Dr Ismael Kamara, President of NAB Consulting, stated: “São Tomé and Príncipe has strong institutional and financial credibility to support a well-structured electricity-sector programme, provided the project is developed in a transparent, bankable and sustainable manner, with clear revenue mechanisms and alignment among public authorities, operators, financiers and technical partners.”
Government stakeholders welcomed the technical exchanges and invited TECMON Energy and NAB Consulting to further develop and submit a detailed technical and financial proposal. The proposal will be subject to technical, financial, legal and institutional review by the competent authorities and should clearly demonstrate its alignment with the country’s electricity-sector priorities and ongoing energy projects.
The Government reaffirmed that the stabilisation of electricity supply remains a national priority and that short-term measures should contribute to, and not replace, the country’s long-term objective of developing a more diversified, resilient and renewable-based electricity systeFor their part, TECMON Energy and NAB Consulting commended the Government of São Tomé and Príncipe for its commitment to addressing the country’s electricity challenges and confirmed their willingness to continue the technical dialogue with the relevant national institutions.
NAB Consulting specializes in structured finance, development-finance mobilization and public-sector transaction advisory across West and Central Africa.
In June, the firm said it had completed a €250 million structured finance facility for Niger, co-arranged with Coris Bank Niger and funded by Afreximbank, to support the country’s economic recovery program. Recent reporting also states that NAB Consulting has structured or supported 29 transactions over the past three years, completed or nearing completion, worth an estimated €2.93 billion.
TECMON Energy is an African energy and infrastructure group active in power generation, transmission and distribution, EPC, and operations and maintenance, with references amongst others in Burkina Faso, Namibia, South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic and Morocco, and international representation in Germany, the United Kingdom and China.