Independent power company Globeleq and its project partners, energy developer Source Energia and Mozambican national power utility Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM), have received formal notification from EDM (the offtaker) that commercial operations at the 19 MW Cuamba solar photovoltaic (PV) and 7 MWh energy storage plant began on September 12.

In September, Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Carlos Zacarias and other guests officially inaugurated the Cuamba solar plant, which is Mozambique’s very first combined utility-scale solar and energy storage plant.

The $36-million Cuamba solar plant is also Globeleq’s first greenfield project in Mozambique and the group’s first combined solar and storage plant in its operating portfolio.  

It is said to supply clean energy to EDM through a 25-year power purchase agreement and provides power for about 22 000 Mozambican families, displacing over 172 000 t of carbon dioxide over the life of the project.

The existing Cuamba substation was also upgraded to ensure the smooth integration of variable solar energy into the grid.

Financing for the Cuamba project was provided by The Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund, a member of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) with $19-million in debt funding.

The PIDG’s Viability Gap Funding grant facility provided $7-million to support an affordable tariff, fund essential grid upgrades and an energy storage system for EDM.

BII Plus, the technical assistance facility of British International Investment, contributed a $1-million grant towards the battery energy storage system.

“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. Globeleq, Source Energia and EDM have all invested in this project – a public-private partnership that demonstrates the confidence of international investors in Mozambique.

“This is the third large-scale solar plant in Mozambique and the second that has had the support of the UK and Norway, two long-time friend and partner countries. We expect to build more renewable projects like this and look forward to initiating the Namaacha project – the first wind project in our country,” Nyusi said at the inauguration.

“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 Programme. In doing so, we are creating the essential conditions for industrialisation, job creation, and an energy transition,” Zacarias said at the event.

“We are extremely excited to now have Cuamba Solar officially delivering clean power to the Mozambican grid via EDM and supporting both the local economy and the government’s efforts to build more renewable power. We continue to build our business in Mozambique through this project, our purchase of the Mocuba solar PV plant and our Temane gas-to-power project, currently under construction,” Globeleq CEO Mike Scholey added.