Chamber of Mines of Mozambique: Double digit minimum salary increases in the mining industry not ...
in file CoM
Electricity production by solar parks in Mozambique in the first quarter of this year was up by almost 14% on the same period of last year, but still accounts for less than 0.5% of the total, according to official data consulted on Monday by Lusa.
According to the government’s budget execution report for January to March, electricity production in the country’s six large solar parks, and by other, smaller plants, totalled 19,688 MegaWatt-hours (MWh) in this period, compared to 17,328 MWh in the first three months of 2023.
Despite the growth in production, solar parks only accounted for 0.4% of total electricity production in Mozambique in the first quarter, which was led by hydroelectric plants, with 84.6% – essentially the Cahora-Bassa Hydroelectric Plant (82.2% of total electricity production in the quarter).
Mozambique’s government plans to move ahead with solar power stations in at least five parts of the country by 2030, with an estimated capacity of 1,000 MW of electricity production, promising a “true solar revolution” in the words of the Energy Transition Strategy (ETS), as reported by Lusa in February.
“Accelerating these types of projects to a larger scale is the simplest way to solve Mozambique’s strategic dilemma after 2030: having to choose between green energy for export or supplying energy to industrial consumers,” the document reads.
Last year, Mozambique had projects for 125 MW of solar power plants, with 80 MW already connected to the grid.
The government admits that the country’s dependence on fossil fuels will continue over the coming decades, even with the implementation of the ETS.
The new strategy, which envisages investments of around $80 billion (€73 billion) by 2050, foresees that Mozambique will develop, in a first phase, by 2030, “at least” 1,000 MW of new solar photovoltaic capacity in Dondo, Lichinga, Manje, Cuamba, Zitundo and other sites “to be identified”, and 200 MW to 500 MW of new onshore wind power capacity, namely in Inhambane, Lagoa Pathi.
“Large industrial investors who need large amounts of green electricity should be encouraged, through a favourable business and regulatory environment, to develop large-scale solar and wind energy projects,” the strategy document adds.
By 2050, the aim is to have at least 7.5 GW of solar photovoltaic capacity installed in Mozambique and up to 2.5 GW of wind power capacity.
“To ensure price optimisation and accelerate the expansion of solar and wind capacity, the government should build on the Renewable Energy Auction Programme in Mozambique,” whose principles introduced “competition in the awarding of renewable energy contracts,” the document states.
“The rapid growth of solar expansion in South Africa following the introduction of auctions is a regional example to follow,” emphasises the ETS, which also stresses “long-term” initiatives.
“Continue to gradually develop the latest solar and wind generation potential to meet the growing demand for electricity. A true ‘solar revolution’ will be needed to meet Mozambique’s growing consumption in a clean way,” the document states.
Mozambique’s president, Filipe Nyusi, told the COP28 United Nations climate summit in Dubai in December that the ETS “not only places Mozambique at the forefront of climate innovation, but also positions it as an attractive sustainable investment destination.”
Leave a Reply
Be the First to Comment!
You must be logged in to post a comment.
You must be logged in to post a comment.