ALTEN EnergíasRenovables has won the tender put out by NamPower, Namibia’s state electricity company, to develop, execute and operate what will be, as of today, the biggest photovoltaic solar power plant in Namibia and Sub-Saharan Africa (apart from South Africa), with installed capacity of 45.5 MWp, an investment forecast at US$45M and a useful life of 25 years.
The power produced by the new plant will meet 3% of the country’s energy needs. In addition to commissioning the project, NamPoweris also an investor, with a 19% stake.
Under the terms of the tender, the ALTEN EnergíasRenovables group will be in charge of completing development of the energy production plant, its financing, managing the construction and its subsequent operations and maintenance.
The investment vehicle (ALTEN Hardap) is already set up and consists of NamPower, local investors and the ALTEN EnergíasRenovables group. The financial closure procedures are also underway, as well as the selection of the contractor and the implementation planning engineers.
The new power production plant will use PV solar technology and occupy a land area of 100 Ha. It is located in the Hardap region, in the Mariental municipality, 230 km south of the capital, Windhoek. The plant will have around 140,000 crystalline silicon panels mounted on solar trackers that will move every day from east to west on a horizontal axis.
Namibia has one of the best electricity infrastructures in Africa and a high level of electrification, but it is also highly dependent on imported energy. The new infrastructure will make the country’s energy mix more balanced and reduce its energy dependency on other countries in the region by nearly 5%.
The Deputy President of ALTEN EnergíasRenovables, Juan Laso, commented about winning the tender for this plant in Namibia that “this achievement builds on the solid commitment being made by ALTEN Energías to Sub-Saharan Africa in meeting the region’s vast energy needs. We expect to have excellent results over the next few years, results that are underpinned by clean, sustainable technologies”.
Luis Castellanos, CEO of ALTEN EnergíasRenovables for Africa, pointed out that “this great work by the entire ALTEN team shows, once again, our high level of competitiveness, which is the reward for the experience and passion that we bring to the job.
We will be proud to work with NamPower and our local partners on this challenge and we are sure that, in a question of months, it will demonstrate the enormous potential of this technology to meet the area’s energy needs”.
About ALTEN
Alten Renewable Energy is a leading IPP in the specialist photovoltaic solar energy sector, with offices in Spain, the Netherlands, Kenya, Nigeria, Mexico and Namibia. It has great expertise in the development, financing, construction and operation of PV solar plants in challenging environments. In 2016, the company was adjudicated 348 MW in Mexico in that country’s second electricity tender.
It has reached the financial closure process for 520 MWp in Kenya , Namibia, Nigeria and Mexico and expanded its activity in Africa beyond its core markets to others such as Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique and Senegal . Additionally the company has a pipeline of 1 GW , in Africa and Latam , at different stages of development.
