Page 11 - AfrElec Week 46

AfrElec
NEWS IN BRIEF
AfrElec
EMISSIONS
Eskom needs $12bn to
comply with new emissions
laws
Eskom needs around ($12.60bn to comply fully with existing legislation curbing harmful emissions, a government presentation to parliament said this week.
Eskom, which uses mainly coal-fired power plants to generate electricity, was one of 37 top domestic polluters, including Sasol (SOLJ.J), granted a five-year reprieve by government until 2020 to meet air emission standards, Reuters reported.
The new minimum emissions standards for air quality laws in South Africa, which cover particulate, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions, came into effect on April 1, 2015.
“Complete compliance with the 2010 Minimum Emission Standard would require an estimated 187 billion rand,” the presentation by the Department of Public Enterprises said.
Africa’s biggest public utility supplies
over 90% of South Africa’s electricity, relying largely on ageing, heavily polluting coal-fired power stations but does not generate enough cash to meet its debt servicing costs.
Project delays and cost overruns at Medupi and Kusile, two mega-coal plants currently being built by Eskom, largely contributed
to Eskom’s debt ballooning to ZAR450bn w($30.5bn).
“Given the current financial constraints, at this stage Medupi will be prioritised to be retrofitted with Flue-Gas Desulfurisation (FGD technology),” the department said.
South Africa has said any new coal plants would need to have emission-reducing
technology, such as FGD.
In September, Eskom said it might have to
shut some plants if it fails to reduce emissions, raising the prospect of further power cuts in the county and also putting more pressure on the government which has had to bail out the debt-ridden company to keep it afloat.
Eskom has applied to the Department of Environmental Affairs for rolling postponements of its obligations under the legislation to meet the emissions and air standards.
THERMAL GENERATION
470MW Powership Osman Khan commences power production on natural gas in Ghana
Ghana’s 470MW Karadeniz Powership Osman Khan currently located in Sekondi has commenced power production utilising the country’s indigenous natural gas from the Western region.
In August, the Powership departed from the Tema Fishing Harbor to berth at its new location within the Sekondi Naval Base.
The 470MW capacity Karpowership, which was berthed and operating from Tema at 45MW, was to augment the country’s energy supply.
The new vessel replaced a 225MW barge which was delivered in November 2015.
The arrival of the vessel was part of the Power Purchase Agreement signed with
the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), requiring Karpowership Ghana Company Limited to provide a total of 450MW capacity, and directly feed it into the national grid for 10 years.
To ensure Karpowership reaches its maximum capacity, government relocated the plant to Aboadze, near Takoradi.
Karpowership is the owner, operator and builder of the only Powership (floating power plant) fleet in the world and plays an active role in medium to long-term investments; providing access to fast-track, affordable and reliable electricity.
Powerships have a range of 30 W to 470MW and are delivered ready to operate in less than 60 days.
Currently, Karpowership owns and operates 22 Powerships with an installed capacity exceeding 3,500MW and another 5,000MW are under construction or in the pipeline.
In addition to a Powership fleet, Karpowership owns and operates its own LNG fleet.
With expertise and experience in the
field, Karpowership serves as a one-stop-
shop for LNG to Power solutions, as a single provider delivering all parts of the value chain; including but not limited to LNG sourcing, transport, delivery, regasification, and electricity production; with the mission of powering life wherever needed.
HYDRO
Voith signs service contract
for Ethiopia’s Gilgel Gibe
HPP
Voith has signed a comprehensive service and operations consultancy contract for the Gilgel Gibe hydropower plant in Ethiopia.
Central aspect of the two-year service and operations consultancy contract is the optimisation of the energy production of the hydropower plant Gilgel Gibe II with a current output of 420MW.
Voith’s scope of supply comprises the modernisation of the maintenance systems, the implementation of digital solutions and the knowledge transfer through special training programmes. All local activities are exclusively provided by Ethiopian Voith experts.
“Together with the plant operator Ethiopian Electric Power, we want to utilise the whole potential of the hydropower
plant Gilgel Gibel II,” said Mark Claessen, Managing Director Voith Hydro East Africa.
“We succeed in this by reducing unplanned downtimes and failures to a minimum.
A stable and sustainable energy supply is
the foundation for social and economic development in Ethiopia and many other African countries.“
Week 46 21•November•2019
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