Page 14 - AfrElec Week 35
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AfrElec                                      NEWS IN BRIEF                                            AfrElec







       industry, the value added tax (VAT) is charged   Fund to provide backup electricity to water   The Excelsior project in Western Cape
       at 18 percent for all off-grid solar products.   pumping stations along Libya’s Man-Made   was one of the winners in the fourth bid
       “The new measure will help businesses reach   River (MMR), the U.S. Embassy announced.  round of South Africa’s Renewable Energy
       those most-in-need of electricity access,   The project will mean that clean renewable   IPP Procurement (REIPPP) programme. The
       leading to more empowered consumers and   energy will be used to ensure a more reliable   company won a contract to equip and build
       more resilient communities,” said GOGLA’s   water and power supply in Libya, the   the wind farm back in 2015. It erected 13
       regional representative, Namory Doumbia.  announcement stated.           units of 2.5-MW PMDD wind turbines near
         By reducing the acquisition costs of all   Giving more details, the statement revealed   Swellendam.
       renewable energy production equipment by   that solar plants will be installed along the   In 2015, Goldwind also won a contract
       18 percent, the Senegalese government aims   MMR to provide the power needed to supply   for the 120-MW Golden Valley wind project.
       to boost the rate of access to renewable energy   water for Tripoli, and boost electricity supply   It said today its construction is progressing
       in its rural areas. This is part of the broader   in southern Libya to the towns and tribes   “smoothly”, with grid connection planned for
       campaign that the government is currently   along the river.             February 2021.
       running to achieve universal electricity access   The solar plants would also create job
       in the country by 2025.             opportunities and provide revenue to local
                                           communities.                         EleQtra begins building
                                              The statement noted that the MMR ‘‘is
       USAID, UNSMIL, UNDP and             the world’s largest irrigation project and a   Namaacha wind farm in
                                           vital source of drinking water for 70% of the
       World Bank to install solar         country’s population’’.              Mozambique
                                           USAID
       system to power the MMR                                                  The private infrastructure development
                                                                                company EleQtra has just started construction
       and provide electricity for         WIND                                 works on the Namaacha wind farm in
                                                                                southern Mozambique. With a planned
       South Libya                         Goldwind ready with 32.5-            capacity of 120 MW, the facility should be
                                                                                commissioned within 3 years.
       The U.S Agency for International    MW project in S Africa                 Work is beginning on the Namaacha wind
       Development’s (USAID) Libya Public                                       project site in southern Mozambique. The
       Financial Management program is partnering   Chinese wind turbine maker Xinjiang   project is being carried out by EleQtra. The
       with the United Nations Support Mission   Goldwind Science & Technology (HKG:2208)   private infrastructure development company,
       in Libya (UNSMIL), the UN Development   today announced the full commissioning of   which operates in sub-Saharan African
       Program (UNDP), the World Bank, and the   all turbines at the 32.5-MW Excelsior wind   countries, will develop a wind power plant
       Libyan Local Investment and Development   park in South Africa.          with a capacity of 120 MW. The company says
                                                                                the project will take place in two phases. The
                                                                                first wind farm will have a capacity of 60 MW;
                                                                                the second will add another 60 MW.
                                                                                  The Namaacha wind project is expected
                                                                                to come online in about 3 years. The EleQtra
                                                                                company plans to invest about $ 280 million
                                                                                (almost 20 billion Mozambican meticals) for
                                                                                its implementation. The electricity generated
                                                                                by the wind farm will be sold to the state
                                                                                company Electricidade de Moçambique
                                                                                (EDM) under a Power Purchase Agreement
                                                                                (PPA) signed with EleQtra. The director of the
                                                                                wind project, Pedro Coutinho, explains that
                                                                                the wind farm will be connected to the Boane
                                                                                substation, near the capital Maputo.
                                                                                  The development of the Namaacha wind
                                                                                farm was approved in 2018, following an
                                                                                agreement signed between the Mozambique
                                                                                Energy Fund (Funae) and EleQtra. In the
                                                                                same year, the United States Trade and
                                                                                Development Agency (USTDA) awarded
                                                                                EleQtra a grant to carry out feasibility studies
                                                                                for this 120 MW wind project. The studies
                                                                                were carried out by Australian consulting firm
                                                                                Worley Parsons.








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