Benguela - Angola’s 188.8 MW largest photovoltaic solar power plant located in Biópio commune in Catumbela municipality, coastal Benguela province, started operating this Wednesday, after its inauguration by the head of State João Lourenço.
The infrastructure built by the consortium that brings together the US company Sun Africa LCC and the Portuguese construction company MCA (M.Couto Alves, S.A.) cost 256 million Euros.
The project will strengthen the national electricity system.
The opening ceremony, which was attended by the First Lady Ana Dias Lourenço, and the aides of the incumbent of the Executive Power, marked the 100% start-up of the Biópio solar park, one year and four months after the start of the works and the tests and trials carried out.
The 220 Kv electrical transmission line to transfer energy from this plant to the existing sub-station in Biópio and from there to the sectioning station in that region was completed, covering a total of 1575 meters, enabling the injection of 188.8 MW of energy in the national interconnected grid.
The project, the second installed in Benguela province, after Baía Farta, with 96 MW of power, occupies 436 hectares and has cutting-edge technology for the production of clean and renewable energy, enough to supply the needs of 500,000 homes of Angolans, the equivalent – as is estimated – of more than one million consumers, mainly in rural areas.
The minister of Energy and Water, João Baptista Borges, considered a historic the fact that Angola started producing electricity from an inexhaustible resource, such as the sun, at a time when the authorities are seeking to diversify the energy matrix.
He also described the solar projects in Biópio and Baía Farta as an “age of innovation”, with greater consistency and resilience of the interconnected electrical system, to compensate for the intermittent rains in the country, as a result of climate change.
Once injected into the interconnected system, the electricity from the photovoltaic plants in the province of Benguela will be available to supply any of the 10 provinces already connected to the national grid and, thus, continue with the electrification of more areas.
He said that the expectation is that many Angolan families can have more and more access to clean and cheap energy, in addition to reducing the costs of using small and large gasoline and diesel generators.
More parks on way
The government announced plans for creation of new solar parks that will come into operation to continue to strengthen the renewable energy component in the country and help meet the needs of greater demand.
Angola will have seven photovoltaic solar plants, including the parks in the municipalities of Saurimo (Lunda Sul), Lucapa (Lunda Norte), Luena (Moxico), Bailundo (Huambo) and Cuito (Bié). This will involve the installation of a million solar panels, totaling 370 megawatts.
Estimated at 523 million euros, the project is developed by the MCA group and Sun Africa, from the technological to the financial component, including international certification, given that renewable energies have been a strong focus by several African countries, including Angola, although it is still far from realising its potential in this field.
The materialisation of this investment, ensured by the Swedish Export Promotion Agency (SEK), will contribute to the supply of electricity to 2.4 million people, especially in areas with a lack of infrastructure for access to the public grid.
João Baptista Borges reiterated the government's commitment to a matrix with 72 percent clean energy and zero carbon emissions, as a way of replacing the production of energy from thermal power stations, in many parts of the country, based on generators.
Environmental impact
The installation of the new equipment will prevent the emission of 935,953 tons of carbon (CO) per year in Angola, which is entering the race for an environmental energy matrix through this project, considered by MCA to be the largest integrated public intervention programme for renewable energies in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The head of the Energy and Water department also stated that these projects are part of the government’s strategy to “decarbonize” the Angolan industry and economy, taking into account the need to ensure a sustainable environment for the next generations.
In recent years, the dams in the country had already started to report little inflow of water, due to the lack of rain. Therefore, the Angolan Government's commitment to the construction of these plants as an alternative for the production of electricity from solar sources, in parallel with thermal plants, where there is an excessive consumption of fuel - diesel.
The saving of around 1.4 million liters of fuel daily is the impact that the production of electricity will have, through solar plants.
About solar energy
Solar energy is converted into electricity through the photovoltaic effect, which occurs when particles of sunlight collide with atoms present in the solar panel, generating electron movement and creating the electrical current called solar photovoltaic energy.
Instead of fuel or natural gas used in thermal plants, photovoltaic parks only need a basic and abundant ingredient in the country: the Sun, which is the big difference and advantage.
In Africa, countries such as Kenya, South Africa, Algeria, Ghana, Morocco, among others, stand out in the production of solar energy.
Estimates indicate that 60 million people use solar energy as a source of electricity in Africa, a continent where almost 87% of low-income people live in rural areas and do not have access to electricity.
