Globeleq, an independent power company in Africa, and its project partners, Source Energia, an energy developer, and Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM), the Mozambican national power utility, have received formal notification from EDM, the off-taker, that commercial operations have commenced at the 19 MWp Cuamba Solar PV and 7 MWh energy storage plant in Mozambique.
"The Cuamba solar and storage plant will provide greater energy security and stability in this region of Mozambique and marks a turning point for the Cuamba district,” said His Excellency Filipe Nyusi, President of the Republic of Mozambique. “This is the third large-scale solar plant in Mozambique and the second that has had the support of the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Norway, two long-time friend and partner countries."
Through a 25-year power purchase agreement, the $36 million Cuamba Solar plant will supply clean energy to EDM and provide power for around 22,000 Mozambican families, reducing over 172,000 tons of CO2 over the life of the project. The existing Cuamba substation was also upgraded for integrating variable solar energy into the grid.
"This project represents a demonstration of the company's effort in the search for sustainable solutions to accelerate access to energy for Mozambicans in a sustainable and accessible way,” said EDM's Chairman, Marcelino Gildo Alberto. “In compliance with the Government's Five-Year Plan, which provides for the introduction of 200MW in renewable energies, EDM is at the forefront of the energy transition in line with the Paris agreements to reduce global warming".
The Cuamba project was financed by The Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund, a member of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), with $19 million in debt funding. PIDG’s Viability Gap Funding grant facility also provided $7 million to support affordable tariffs and fund essential grid upgrades and an energy storage system for EDM. Another $1 million in grants for the battery energy storage system was provided by BII Plus, the British International Investment technical assistance facility.
"The Cuamba Solar Power Plant project aims to increase energy availability in the country through both public and private investments, with growing contribution from renewable energy sources, and addresses a strategic objective outlined in the Government's Five-Year Program,” said Carlos Zacarias, the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy. “In doing so, we are creating the essential conditions for industrialization, job creation, and an energy transition."
