Botswana Power Corporation receives 166 EOIs for 100 MW solar project
The Botswana government has received 166 responses to a call for expressions of interest (EoI) for the establishment of a Joint Venture with Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) for a 100 MW solar power plant.
The Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) has been appointed as government’s implementation agent for the project and the state-owned utility has indicated that it plans to issue a tender in the coming weeks for the shortlisted firms.
The Ministry Of Minerals, Green Technology and Energy Security (MMGE) has embarked on a comprehensive electrical power system development strategy which includes among others, the development of a 100 MW solar power plant two years from appointment of the preferred Independent Power Producer (IPP) joint venture partner.
The additional power generation will be from a new solar power plant constructed, commissioned, owned and operated, by the IPP joint venture company. This initiative is in line with National Energy Policy goal of providing affordable, reliable and adequate supply of energy for sustainable development, as well as improving access to and efficient use of energy resources.
The objectives of the 100 MW Solar Power plant project are to:
- Improve security and reliability of energy supply,
- Increase share of new and renewable sources of energy in the energy supply mix of the country,
- Offset the country’s carbon footprint
Further information is available here.
The country is facing a huge power supply deficit owing to diminished surplus generation capacity in the region and the growing electrical energy requirements in Botswana. This has been compounded by the low availability of Morupule B power station. The base generation plants currently consist of Morupule “A” with an installed capacity of 132 MW and Morupule “B” with 600 MW. The available base generation capacity averages 260 MW only from Morupule B power station since the Morupule “A” plant is undergoing refurbishment.
The current peak demand stands at approximately 600 MW and the supply gap is met through imports mainly from South Africa (Eskom) and some from Mozambique (EDM). The two emergency plants, Orapa 90 MW and Matshelagabedi 105 MW are also dispatched when the imports are not available or when they are too expensive.
According to the twenty year national electricity demand forecast (2015 to 2035), it is predicted that the electricity demand will grow from a diversified base of approximately 606 MW in 2015 to an expected High Scenario of approximately 1,523 MW in 2035. The Low Scenario will reach approximately 1,184 MW and the most likely Scenario is expected to grow to an estimated value of 1,359 MW in 2035. This is based on the average growth rate per annum for the low, likely and high scenarios of 8%, 10% and 11% respectively.
