Location of 200MW solar station down to two towns

Staff Writer | Thursday March 8, 2012 00:00

 

A pre-feasibility study in 2008 identified Letlhakane, Jwaneng, Selebi-Phikwe, Serowe and Maun as receiving the most solar radiation and fewest obstacles and therefore the most ideal sites for the pioneering solar power station.

Typically, solar power stations require arid locations enjoying plenty of sunshine year-round, as well as large tracts of flat land that has no or few other uses.

In general, the world's biggest solar power stations are located in deserts where most of the key location requirements are satisfied.

Last week, consultants involved in the development of the solar power station revealed that the race to host the facility had come down to Letlhakane and Jwaneng.

The consultants said the five original sites had been assessed since production of the pre-feasibility study, enabling the selection of the two towns.

'Five possible sites have been investigated for the development of this project out of which two sites, near Letlhakane and Jwaneng, have been selected for further technical and environmental/social evaluation,' the consultants said in a notice.

According to the notice, the consultants, Loci Environmental Pty, have begun an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for both sites to sensitise affected and interested parties on the possible impact of the solar power station.

Public meetings are scheduled to be held at Jwaneng Customary Court and the Kgotla in Letlhakane later this month.

According to the consultants, besides the power station's construction itself, the project will involve overhead transmission lines, substations, wellfields, pump stations and pipelines, as well as an access road.

The EIA is part of the bankable feasibility study whose tender the Botswana Power Corporation recently awarded to an international consortium led by Spain's National Renewable Energy Centre (CENER).

According to the terms of reference of the US$1.5 million (P10.8 million) tender, the CENER consortium will conduct a detailed assessment of plant location, recommending the final site of the 200MW power station.

The consortium is also expected to design the power plant, identify project risks/mitigation measures and most importantly determine the solar power station's capital and operating expenditure.

Besides the highly anticipated decision on the location, all eyes are on the consultants' findings regarding capital and operating expenditure, which will determine electricity generation costs and the tariff consumers can expect out of the power station.

The electricity generation costs will determine the level to which government will be required to subsidise the power from the station, which is expected to feed into the national grid and complement existing sources.

The solar power station has its genesis in a 2006 renewable energy-based rural electrification agreement between the Government of Botswana and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

It forms part of a range of initiatives to reduce the country's dependence on fossil fuels and costly diesel-fired power stations.