By Clever Mwale:
The Malawi Government says it has secured partial funding out of the required $12 million needed to complete the first phase of the Nanjoka Solar Power Plant in Salima District.
Mathanga
In October last year, Energy and Mining Minister Jean Mathanga promised Malawians that the government would provide funds needed to finalise the 10-megawatt first phase of the solar power project.
However, persistent forex shortages had sparked concerns over whether the commitment would be honoured in time to meet commissioning deadlines.
In a response on Wednesday, Ministry of Energy and Mining spokesperson Joan Thaundi said the government assisted Energy Generation Company (Egenco) to secure a Letter of Credit to facilitate payments related to commissioning of the plant.
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“Through the Honourable Minister, the ministry assisted Egenco in securing a Letter of Credit, which is being used to finalise the power plant,” Thaundi said.
She said while funds for commissioning had been secured, financing for the battery energy storage system was awaiting foreign currency allocation through local banks.
According to the ministry, arrangements have already been made for battery storage funding, but the release of forex remains dependent on availability.
“The ministry assisted Egenco to secure funding for the battery storage through local banks. Currently, Egenco is on the waiting list for forex allocation,” she said.
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Egenco spokesperson Moses Gwaza confirmed that the government had released part of the required foreign exchange to enable payments linked to commissioning activities.
“Following the honourable minister’s assurance, the government has provided a portion of the required foreign exchange to facilitate payments to the contractor for commissioning activities,” Gwaza said.
He said the payment process was at an advanced stage and was expected to be finalised by the end of the week, after which commissioning engineers would travel to Malawi.
Gwaza added that delays in forex allocation had not affected the manufacturing of the battery energy storage system, which is progressing as planned.
He said once completed, the project was expected to play a significant role in reducing load shedding, especially in Salima and surrounding districts.
“For Salima and nearby areas, the advantage is that power will be supplied directly from the Nanjoka Solar Plant in the event of disruptions from Nkula and other stations,” Gwaza said.
The ministry said it remained optimistic that the project would be commissioned in January, despite the pending battery installation.
The Nanjoka Solar Power Plant is expected to add 10 megawatts to the national grid in its first phase and forms part of plans to expand the site into a 50-megawatt facility.
