Energy
MALAWI GOVT. SCOUTS FOR STRATEGIC INVESTOR FOR 350MW POWER PROJECT
December 19, 2019 / Wahard Betha
The Malawi Government is seeking a strategic private sector sponsor to develop the proposed 350MW Mpatamanga Hydro Power Project on the Shire River.
The Mpatamanga project, which was identified in the 1998 Power Development Plan study, is being developed as a Public Private Partnership with the Malawi government through EGENCO acquiring 30% shareholding and a strategic sponsor expected to have 70% interest.
Speaking to Mining and Trade Review at the launching ceremony of the procurement process for the strategic sponsor in Blantyre, Acting CEO for Malawi’s Public Private Partnership Commission, Audrey Mwala, said the new power plant will be located at Mpatamanga Gorge, between the two existing hydropower plants, Tedzani and Kapichira, on the Shire River.
She said: “Government conducted a comprehensive Feasibility Study in 2018 which recommended a peaking plant with a capacity of 309MW, and the station will have two dams: Main dam for 309MW daily peaking plant, and a regulating dam downstream for additional 41MW of baseload generating.”
“The project intends to meet future power demand and to balance current and future baseload energy from solar, wind, thermal or run of river plants as it will provide crucial peaking capacity for Malawi.”
The Malawi Government is, meanwhile, looking for interested bidders who upon signing confidentiality undertaking and paying the required fee will be granted access to a Virtual Data Room containing all necessary documents for the project.
She said the state will organize a pre-bid conference and will provide additional opportunities for bidders to submit queries and seek clarifications during the tender process.
The strategic sponsor will also be subsequently required to tender out certain key contracts in compliance with requirements set by the Malawi Government.
Minister of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining Bintony Kutsaira, who graced the launching ceremony for the procurement process, touted the project as one of various interventions that his Ministry is pursuing to develop the energy sector which is one of the priority areas in the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) III.
“The country is ranked poorly on access to electricity which is only available to 11% of the population, despite this low penetration of electricity, the country faces significant blackouts mainly arising from a low generation capacity. Implementation of this project means a halt to persistent power blackouts.”
Kutsaira expressed gratitude to the World Bank for financing the feasibility study of the project.
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