Construction begins on 41 MW solar project in Mozambique

Agence Française de Développement (AFD) said this week that work has started on a 41 MW solar plant that French independent power producer Neoen is developing in Metoro, Cabo Delgado province, Mozambique.

The plant will be is jointly owned by Neoen and utility Electricidade de Mocambique (EDM) through a special purpose vehicle, Central Solar Metoro. It is expected to generate 68 GWh of electricity per year.

The project is being developed under the Projeto de Promoção de Leilões para Energias Renováveis (PROLER) initiative, which is aimed at creating a regulatory framework and auction mechanism for the development of large-scale renewable energy projects. The AFD has agreed to provide $40 million of financing.

The 40 MW Mocuba Solar IPP project, developed by Norway's Scatec Solar, is the only large-scale solar facility in Mozambique at present. The $76 million project, commissioned in August, has a 25-year power purchase agreement with EDM. It increased the country’s total installed PV capacity from only 17 MW at the end of 2018 to around 60 MW today.

In early October, the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy (Mireme) launched a tender for the deployment of three solar power projects with capacities of 40 MW each.