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Namibia: Many Tenders Received for Kudu Power Project
A total of 46 tender submissions were received for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the Kudu Gas Power Station. The tender closed last week Friday. The Namibia Power Corporation (NamPower), as the project sponsor of the Kudu Power Station development, issued the pre-qualification tender for the EPC in April 2013.
Nampower Managing Director Paulinus Shilamba said during a media conference on Tuesday that the main EPC tender document will be issued to the shortlisted contractors only. They will then have 90 days in which to prepare and submit their respective offers.
“We expect to complete the evaluation of the EPC tender towards the end of this year, with contract-awarding set for the second quarter of 2014. We have equally also made considerable progress in advancing the preparation of procuring strategic equity partners to take up 49 percent in KuduPower,” he beamed.
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Uganda: Promotion of Small Power Plants Over Big Power Plants Better for Uganda
Small-scale micro hydro power is both an efficient and reliable form of energy most of the time. It only takes a small amount of flow (as little as two gallons per minute) or a drop as low as two feet to generate electricity with micro hydro. Electricity can be delivered as far as a mile away to the location where it is being used.
Micro hydro will be an excellent method of harnessing renewable energy from small streams that available around the country. This is considered to function as a 'run-of-river' system, meaning that the water passing through the generator is directed back into the stream with relatively little impact on the surrounding ecology.
Research shows that building a small-scale hydro-power system can cost from $1,000 - $20,000, depending on site electricity requirements and location. Maintenance fees are relatively small in comparison to other energy technologies.
With hydropower dams in Uganda, because of climate change, and unforeseeable forces of nature, they have continuously produced less power than initially expected.
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Green Investment Bank supports small scale biomass boilers
Investment of £4.9 million to be provided for the replacement of inefficient heating systems with biomass boilers. Energy Saving Investments (ESI), an Equitix managed fund in which the UK Green Investment Bank (GIB) is a cornerstone investor, has announced a fund of £4.9 million for its first energy efficiency project. The funding will join a further £5.1 million investment provided by the Equitix Energy Efficiency Fund (EEEF) to replace inefficient heating systems with biomass boilers in both public and private community facilities. The £10 million investment is being made through the energy services company Roundwood Energy Limited which is responsible for financing, installing, maintaining and fuelling the new systems for a period of up to 20 years. The company is supported by its technology partner, Woodpecker Energy Limited of Yeovil, Somerset, which manufactures wood pellet and wood chip biomass boilers. Non-domestic energy efficiency (NDEE) is one of the Green Bank’s priority sectors. The bank awarded the competitive fund mandate to Equitix to invest £50 million, matched by private investors, to drive investment in small-scale low carbon infrastructure requiring less than £30 million of financing. The investment could fund over 60 projects in both private and public sectors thereby saving customers up to 30 percent on their energy bills as well as reducing carbon emissions and supporting the green economy. Customers will not need to make an upfront capital investment in order to switch their heating systems to biomass and applications are now open.
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East Africa: Arusha-Singida Power Project Ushers in EA Energy Sector Integration
The East African Community plans to speed-up the Arusha Singida power interconnection project which will also link Arusha to Nairobi at the Isinya point of Kajiado District.
"It is necessary to fast track the funding for implementing the Singida-Arusha-Nairobi (Isinya) interconnector so that Tanzania can also be interconnected with the other EAC Partner States," reads a statement from the East African Community Secretariat in Arusha.
According to the statement signed by Mr Richard Owora-Othieno, the EAC communications officer, Tanzania apparently is only interconnected with Uganda through a 132kV line in Bukoba area. Tanzania also accesses electricity supply from Kenya at Namanga border through a 33kV distribution line.
The feasibility study and detailed design for the Singida-Arusha-Nairobi (Isinya), funded by the Norwegian Government, is reportedly complete. Other projects that need to be fast tracked according to EAC, include Masaka-Mwanza 220kV, Mwanza-Kisumu 220kV transmission lines and the Rusumo Falls hydropower project and its associated transmission lines.
These are among the priority regional projects identified by the EAC Heads of State during their Retreat on Infrastructure Development and Financing held in November 2012 and the mobilization of resources to finance these projects is ongoing.
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Construction of Ethiopia-Kenya link to begin in September 2018
The decision by the African Development Bank (AfDB) to provide US$338 million of funding for a 1,068 km high capacity transmission line between Ethiopia and Kenya has ensured its go-ahead in September 2013. The US$1.26 billion project, due for completion in 2018, will be a major boost to east African regional trade in electricity.
The 2,000 MW Kenya-Ethiopia link will provide Ethiopia with additional foreign earnings, the country having large hydroelectric potential but insufficient local demand, and supply electricity hungry Kenya.
The World Bank is providing US$684 million towards the project, the government of Kenya is providing US$88 million and the government of Ethiopia US$32 million. A further US$118 million is expected from the French Development Agency.
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Africa: At UN Debate, Experts Weigh Clean Energy, Water Strategies to Halt 'Runaway' Climate Change
With dire warnings likely to match or exceed the worst fears about the effects of global warming, environment and development experts gathered today at United Nations Headquarters to debate the twin challenge of curbing climate change while sustaining economic growth.
"The fundamental challenge of our time is to end extreme poverty in this generation and significantly narrow the global gap between rich and poor without ruining the environmental basis for our survival," General Assembly President Vuk Jeremic said as he opened the Thematic Debate Sustainable Development and Climate Change: Practical Solutions in the Energy-Water Nexus.
"We need to embrace the path to sustainability, crafting a new global partnership in which no nation is left behind, and no country opts out," he told the gathering which featured UN officials, a host of environment and energy Ministers, as well as a diverse mix of experts that included Jeffrey Sachs, Director of Colombia University's Earth Institute, and Rajendra Kumar Pachauri, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
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Global agriculture greenhouse gas emissions 37.5% those of electricity and heat
Global greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector totalled 4.69 billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent in 2010 (the most recent year for which data are available), an increase of 13% over 1990 emissions. By comparison, global carbon dioxide emissions from transport totalled 6.76 billion tons that year, and emissions from electricity and heat production reached 12.48 billion tons, according to Worldwatch Institute's Vital Signs Online service.
Growth in agricultural production between 1990 and 2010 outpaced growth in emissions by a factor of 1.6, demonstrating increased energy efficiency in the agriculture sector.
The three most common gases emitted in agriculture are nitrous oxide, CO2, and methane. Methane is generally produced when organic materials such as crops, livestock feed, or manure decompose anaerobically (without oxygen).
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Liberia, U.S. to Partner On Agriculture, Energy
The United States and Liberia plan to strengthen cooperation in agriculture and energy as the West African country continues its decade-long recovery from civil war.
Speaking at the end of the U.S.-Liberia Partnership Dialogue in Washington May 7, Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said the two countries have a relationship deeply rooted in historical ties and a "shared commitment to democracy, human rights and economic advancement."
She said the first session of the dialogue focused on spurring growth in Liberia's agriculture and energy sectors, looking at ways private companies can be brought in to play a key role.
The next session of the talks is planned for Monrovia, Liberia, within a year and will focus on human development, she said.
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Financial closure for round 2 REIPPP in South Africa
South Africa’s renewable energy independent power producer programme (REIPPP) round two has reached financial closure with 19 projects achieving this milestone on May 9th 2013. These projects which should see a capital investment of R28 million comprise wind, solar and small hydro projects totalling 1,043.9 MW.
There are nine solar photovoltaic (PV) projects totalling 417.1 MW, seven wind projects totalling 562.5 MW, one concentrated solar project (CSP) of 50 MW, and two small hydroelectric projects totalling 14.3 MW.
The average tariff prices for the PV projects fell to 165c/kWh from the 275c/kWh of round 1. The average prices for the wind projects in round two fell from 114c/kWh to 89c/kWh. The CSP project came in at a price of 251c/kWh.
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African Oil & Gas Outlook 2013 (part II) - Analysis By Region
Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is set to produce approximately 5.9 million barrels (bpd) of crude oil in 2013 dominated by Nigeria and Angola compared to the estimated 5.5 million barrels produced in 2012.
This increase will largely reflect the expected return of at least 150,000 bpd in production from South Sudan, which was shut-in for most of 2012.
At full capacity, the region's largest producer, Nigeria, could produce 3 million bpd, but has faced periodic production challenges, which have continued from 2012; production fell to as low as 1.9million bpd at the end of that year, though average stood at around 2.45million bpd. Government forecasts of 2.53million bpd for 2013 would appear ambitious, and levels closer to 2012 are more likely.
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African Oil & Gas Outlook 2013 (part II) - Analysis By Region
Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is set to produce approximately 5.9 million barrels (bpd) of crude oil in 2013 dominated by Nigeria and Angola compared to the estimated 5.5 million barrels produced in 2012.
This increase will largely reflect the expected return of at least 150,000 bpd in production from South Sudan, which was shut-in for most of 2012.
At full capacity, the region's largest producer, Nigeria, could produce 3 million bpd, but has faced periodic production challenges, which have continued from 2012; production fell to as low as 1.9million bpd at the end of that year, though average stood at around 2.45million bpd. Government forecasts of 2.53million bpd for 2013 would appear ambitious, and levels closer to 2012 are more likely.
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Development of wind energy in Africa
Existing wind energy output in Africa remains dominated by north African countries, with south and east Africa poised to gain ground. Wind energy’s prospects in west Africa remain limited. This is one of the conclusions of a comprehensive study on the development of wind energy in Africa.
, by among others Dr Emelly Mutambatsere, principal regional economist, at the African Development Bank (AdB).
As a co-author of the study she says that in the initial stages of the wind market development, donor financing is very visible and as the market matures, both sponsors and financiers enter the market, from public entities and grant financing, to public-private/private entities and non-concessional financing. “However, the market has not yet developed to the point where it can be fully funded by the private sector, therefore development finance institutions remain major players.”
By the end of 2011 the developed potential on the continent saw a strong concentration of wind energy capacity in three north African countries, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia.
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Ghana and Japan Sign $14 Million Grant for Power Distribution
Ghana and Japan, on Monday, signed a US$14 million grant for the improvement of the Power Distribution System project to be carried out in the Brong Ahafo and Northern regions.
The agreement was signed by Ms. Hanna Tetteh, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, and initialled by Mr. Naoto Nikai, Japanese Ambassador to Ghana, at a ceremony in Accra.
Mr. Nikai observed that the Northern part of Ghana lagged behind in terms of electricity distribution.
"Improving distribution of electricity will help reduce poverty (and) will go a long way to improve the quality of medical care and raise educational standards," he said.
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Botswana calls for IPPs to add 600 MW
The government of Botswana has issued a call for Independent Power Producers (IPPs) to submit expressions of interest, as the country plans to add a further 600 MW to its electricity generation capacity.
Half of this future 600 MW is to come through the addition of a further two units to the four unit 600 MW Morupule B power station, which is still being completed. The other 300 MW is for an open ended greenfields development anywhere in Botswana. Though Botswana has significant coal resources, and it makes this option an obvious choice, the greenfields 300 MW baseload power station theoretically could be supplied from other energy sources.
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Plans for geothermal plant in Uganda
AAE systems, a US based group, plans to invest some US$1.2 billion to establish a geothermal plant in the western part of Uganda. It signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the government of Uganda whereby it will build the plant in the Katwe-Kikorongo area.
The company anticipates production of 150 MW of geothermal energy once the project is fully commissioned with first generation to begin in two years and completion of the entire project to take four years.
Eriasi Kiyemba, managing director of Uganda Electricity Transmission Company, says Uganda plans to generate 30% of its power from geothermal sources in the medium term.
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Liberia: New Skills Training - Liberia's Lands, Mines & Energy Ministry Trains Surveyors
Twenty-seven young Liberians are currently undergoing basic skills training techniques in modern land surveying methods.
These students from the University of Liberia were recruited three months ago by the Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy for the course expected to be completed in about a month's and half, according to Mr. Sam Russ, Deputy Minister for Operations, Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy.
The ministry's current land surveying skills training is a USAID sponsored initiative aimed at minimizing land disputes in the country, which have been largely blamed on the poor quality of surveys carried out by GOL land surveyors.
"Many of the land conflicts we've had in this country are probably due to the poor quality of surveys that have been conducted," Minister Russ said Friday at the UL-Fendell Campus.
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Kenya maintains interest in nuclear power
The Kenyan government has maintained its interest in nuclear energy as a source of power. This is illustrated by it having dispatched 11 local people for training in South Korea as part of efforts to enhance electricity generation capacity to over 19,000 MW by 2030.
The team of representatives from Kenya will undertake postgraduate studies in nuclear science at the Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) training school.
Vision 2030 delivery secretariat, director general, Mugo Kibati says, “As part of the wider effort to enhance and diversify our electricity generation capacity, Vision 2030 is encouraged that a team of Kenyans students are now taking their postgraduate nuclear engineering studies in South Korea.”
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Energy related entries in Innovation Prize for Africa 2013 finalists
Ten African innovators have developed practical solutions to some of the continent’s most intractable problems. Chosen from more than 900 applications from 45 countries, the finalists for the Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA) 2013 provide practical examples of Africa’s investment potential.
One of the finalists is a zero blade wind convertor developed in Tunisia. Hassine Labaied and Anis Aouini from Saphon Energy, a Tunisian R&D start up, developed a wind turbine with no blades and which does not rotate. It uses sailboat technology to create cost-effective energy through a back-and-forth three dimensional motion.
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Mauritania PV power plant is launched
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) confirmed its commitment to Africa with the recent opening of a 15 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in Mauritania. The plant cost almost US$32 million to build.
More recognised as a major hub for international trade, the UAE has over the years supported economic and growth projects in developing countries. In that respect, The Sheikh Zayed solar power plant, as the new PV plant in Mauritania is called, fits in.
The renewable energy company Masdar, based in the UAE emirate of Abu Dhabi, launched the facility located near to Mauritania's capital Nouakchott, a city of around 700,000 people. The power plant will provide 10% of the country's energy capacity and will displace approximately 21,225 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually.
Mauritania's electricity grid, which is powered mostly by expensive diesel generators, currently has an installed capacity of only 144 MW, resulting in severe energy shortages.
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Zanzibar celebrates new transmission link from mainland
Zanzibar, the semi-autonomous islands off Tanzania’s coast, celebrated the end of electricity rationing when a national grid link from the mainland, a 100 MW undersea cable, was inaugurated on the 10th of April.
However, while there were celebrations, concerns did remain due to increasing demand on the mainland and unstable sources of hydroelectricity in Tanzania. Members of the Zanzibar house of representatives said that the islands should invest in other sources of power such as solar, wind, sea waves, and power generation from waste.
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Africa: Energy Research Centre Provides New Power Plan
The Energy Research Centre at the University of Cape Town recently published its report Towards a New Power Plan. The report intends to stimulate debate around South Africa's future power sources. It was commissioned by the National Planning Commission as part of its on-going mandate to provide independent research and advice.
Many of the assumptions in the 2010 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) are now out of date and no longer valid. These include the anticipated demand growth, and data on technology and fuel availabilities and costs. According to Paul Vecchiatto from Business Day live, Department of Energy director-general Nelisiwe Magubane nonetheless told Parliament's energy committee on Tuesday April 16,
that South Africa's nuclear programme is non-negotiable and the National Development Plan (NDP) supports it.
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Flexible charging and metering to meet utility challenges
The energy sector is facing dramatic change across the globe, from increased awareness of climate change, changing regulations, rising energy prices and cost pressures to rapidly increasing demand, the stability of the grid and even illegal energy usage and energy theft. Combined with the increasing digitisation of the world, which has led to a data explosion even within the energy sector, utilities providers are faced with numerous challenges. These include the need to handle vast amounts of data, the need to connect the unconnected to the grid, the need for cost-effective compliance with increasing regulatory requirements, and the key issue of security.
Smart metering and smart grid systems are an integral part of dealing with these challenges and meeting global energy demand. However, given the number of users who require energy services, the explosive growth of data and changing regulations and tariffs to name but a few, utilities providers need new, intelligent solutions. Flexible energy charging and metering solutions, which move the intelligence out of the meter itself and into a central IT service, deliver devices at a low cost to the user premises, while enabling the rapid fulfilment of new requirements and the fast tuning of business processes.
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Inexpensive energy conservation options for facility managers
Facility managers have a complex role to fulfil. They must ensure that the functional requirements of facility owners and tenants are met. That means creating a smoothly operating facility that runs economically and meets regulations and business policies. Energy conservation is also assuming increasing importance as owners and tenants look to reduce costs and improve the environment. Fortunately, a number of proven energy efficiency solutions – some at no cost – are now available. Worldwide, buildings are estimated to be responsible for 40% of annual energy use. Over the next few years, as South Africa’s already expensive energy continues to increase in price, energy conservation is expected to become an even more important issue for facility managers. This is especially true where organisations are committed to longer-term facility rental or ownership. Now companies that lease space are not just concerned about the rent, but also about operational costs, providing incentives for building owners to invest in energy efficiency measures.
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Ethiopia: Six New Clean Energy Projects On Tap for Exploration
The Ministry of Water & Energy (MoWE) and the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), have setup a joint steering committee that will develop and implement clean and renewable energy projects which can later be entered into the carbon trading scheme. A dozen people, three from the MoWE, and nine from the EPA were selected as committee members during a meeting between the two parties, on April 10, 2013. The decision to form the committee was made a week earlier, at another meeting where both Wondimu Tekle, state minister for Water & Energy and Desalegn Mesfin, deputy director of the EPA, were present. Fortune was able to confirm the meeting but its repeated attempts to contact people for more information did not bear fruit. Biogas bottling; biodiesel from Jatropha oil; electric and clean energy stoves and electric taxis are the six green economic endeavours being considered by the new committee.
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Hydropower developments in Africa
The International Hydropower Association in its 2013 report notes that development of hydropower along with other renewables is now an explicit priority for many African countries.
Zambia completed civil works on the 2 x 360 MW machines at Kariba North Bank and work has started on the 120 MW Itezhi-Tezhi hydropower station. The year 2012 also marked the completion of Uganda’s 250 MW Bujagali station, the largest private sector investment in the country’s history.
With the completion of Bujagali, Uganda’s electricity production exceeds its demand for the first time, and industrial operations will no longer be faced with the daily outages that have compromised the country’s progress. Although demand for electricity will continue to rise above current capacity, Bujagali represents a major landmark for the country.
In addition developers of hydropower are eligible to bid in South Africa’s Renewable Energy Power Producers Procurement Programme (REIPP).
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Libya looks to
interim generation to cover shortfall
Libya has an expected
power generation deficit of some 500 to 600 MW during its peak summer season. It
plans to eliminate some of this shortage by means of mobile diesel generators
supplied by US based APR Energy. These wheel mounted turbine units can be easily
transported via road, and are installable in three days or less in most
instances. It is not yet known how many of the 25 MW mobile turbines will be
installed in the country but APR Energy’s contract is to provide a total of 250
MW. The company says it typically installs a redundancy of equipment to ensure
the most reliable energy source possible.
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East Africa: SA Firms Eye
EAC Power Exhibit
The government here is
ready to subsidise local companies willing to take part in the forthcoming East
African Power Industry Convention (EAPIC) 2013. The South African government,
through the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) believes this is an ideal
chance for local firms to showcase expertise and win contracts. It has invited
interested companies to begin preparations for the exhibit. Slated for September
10th and 11th in Nairobi, the EAPIC is East Africa's premier 2 day conference
and exhibition that brings together key stakeholders in the East African
electricity power sector - utilities, Ministries, regulators, energy companies,
IPPs, rural electrification agencies, financiers, project developers,
contractors and all others interested in the sector. The DTI plays a critical
role in the promotion of economic development and meaningful participation in
the global economic and trade environment.
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Morocco:
Renewable Energy Drive Gains Pace in Morocco
Ambitious plans to
increase renewables in Morocco's energy mix have taken another step closer to
completion, following the announcement that Africa's second-largest wind farm is
to be built in the south of the country. Morocco is looking to attract up to
€2.8bn in investment under a strategy that is part of the National Renewable
Energy and Efficiency Plan, launched in 2008. The program aims to improve grid
efficiency and generate 42% of domestic needs from renewable energy by 2020. The
strategy is part of a broader attempt not only to improve environmental
sustainability but also to meet rising consumption levels - which jump by an
average of 6% year-on-year - and reduce a heavy dependency on fossil fuel
imports.
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