AquaVenture is to acquire Abengoa’s 56 per cent stake in Teshie-Nungua desalination plant near Accra, Ghana, subject to renegotiation of the water purchase agreement with Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL), or receipt of certain agreements from the plant’s lenders.
New York Stock Exchange-listed AquaVenture will pay $26 million to acquire Befesa Desalination Development Group (BDDG), the Abengoa subsidiary that owns the plant. The deal is expected to complete in Q2 2018.
The 60,000 m3/d facility was shut down on 1 January 2018, after reports emerged that GWCL was struggling to keep up with payments under the water purchase agreement. Abengoa confirmed that it was in talks aimed at re-opening the plant in February.
The project to build, own and operate the plant for 25 years was originally awarded to BDDG in 2011.
Interview: Doug Brown, AquaVenture chief executive (December 2016)