Licence for solar project near Keetmans
Solar Century Africa Limited (Solarcentury Africa) and SolNam Energy have received their updated generation licence from the Electricity Control Board (ECB) to build the SolNam 60 megawatt-peak (MWp) solar project in near Keetmanshoop.“This is fantastic news that enables us to usher in a new era in energy supply throughout the region,” said Saskia Breuer, SolNam managing director.
The two companies signed a joint development agreement early last year to co-develop the project.
It has land secured near to the Kokerboom sub-station, obtained the required environmental clearance certificate from ministry of environment, forestry and tourism in 2022 and is targeting a financial close in 2024.
Gerus
The project will help Namibia in reaching its climate change targets, and transition away from fossil fuels, which it has committed to under the recent COP28 framework in Dubai, Solarcentury Africa said in a statement.
It will be Solarcentury Africa’s second merchant project in Namibia and will be primarily focused on supplying local customers, the company added.
The new project follows the 20 MWp Gerus solar PV plant that is due to enter construction in the coming months, a strategy made possible by Solarcentury Africa’s membership of the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) as a market participant.
The SAPP membership and the continued development of the SolNam project are important steps in the growth of Solarcentury Africa’s power trading business in the Southern African Development Community (SADC), according to the statement.
“Solarcentury Africa believes that the merchant route opens the opportunity to deliver significant new renewable power generation capacity quickly and cost effectively. This will contribute to the energy transition in the region and help meet the region’s growing power needs,” the company said.
More assets
Both Solarcentury Africa and SolNam aim to develop various renewable energy assets in Southern Africa to provide more power to a region that is currently experiencing a power deficit.
“We are thrilled to partner with SolNam on this important project for Namibia,” Solarcentury Africa CEO Jason de Carteret said.
“The welcomed news that we have now received our updated generation license from ECB is an important milestone for the project and underlines Namibia’s commitment to renewable energy and to this project,” he added.