50MW biomass power plant for Uganda
Quicknote bioenergy business
A British energy firm wants to construct and install a biomass power plant of 50MW in Uganda, which is currently undergoing an energy crisis. Aldwych International - a company specialised in investing in energy in Africa and backed by the Dutch development finance institution and Shell -, filed a proposal with the Ugandan Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) in which it said the cost of the project would be about 296.8 billion shilling (€125/US$160 million). Mark Fitzpatrick, director, said the plant is expected to be commissioned in 2009 and has a life of 20 years.
Uganda currently consumes about 1.4TWh of electricity per annum, most of it coming from hydro. At a very low per capita consumption of 50KWh per year, the biomass power plant would have a capacity to bring electricity to some 500,000 Ugandan households.
“It will be the least expensive thermal option. The plant will have positive externalities like supporting agriculture, displacing green house emissions and reforestation in form of Eucalyptus trees,” he said. Fitzpatrick said the project would also require about 100 square kilometres of land to grow trees and collect bio-mass, access roads, generation plant, transmission and distribution lines.
However, he said until a feasibility study is completed, the cost, timing, size of the power plant and biomass source would be subject to change. Other directors are Helen Tarnoy, Nadia Crandall and Joost Zuidberg. Aldwych applied to ERA for a licence to set up the biomass plant in order to generate electricity for sale to the national grid. “The Electricity Regulatory Authority has under Section 29 of the Electricity Act 1999 received a Notice of Intended Application for a licence from Aldwych International for the generation and sale of electricity,” a statement read [entry ends here].
biomass :: bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: Africa :: Uganda ::
A British energy firm wants to construct and install a biomass power plant of 50MW in Uganda, which is currently undergoing an energy crisis. Aldwych International - a company specialised in investing in energy in Africa and backed by the Dutch development finance institution and Shell -, filed a proposal with the Ugandan Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) in which it said the cost of the project would be about 296.8 billion shilling (€125/US$160 million). Mark Fitzpatrick, director, said the plant is expected to be commissioned in 2009 and has a life of 20 years.
Uganda currently consumes about 1.4TWh of electricity per annum, most of it coming from hydro. At a very low per capita consumption of 50KWh per year, the biomass power plant would have a capacity to bring electricity to some 500,000 Ugandan households.
“It will be the least expensive thermal option. The plant will have positive externalities like supporting agriculture, displacing green house emissions and reforestation in form of Eucalyptus trees,” he said. Fitzpatrick said the project would also require about 100 square kilometres of land to grow trees and collect bio-mass, access roads, generation plant, transmission and distribution lines.
However, he said until a feasibility study is completed, the cost, timing, size of the power plant and biomass source would be subject to change. Other directors are Helen Tarnoy, Nadia Crandall and Joost Zuidberg. Aldwych applied to ERA for a licence to set up the biomass plant in order to generate electricity for sale to the national grid. “The Electricity Regulatory Authority has under Section 29 of the Electricity Act 1999 received a Notice of Intended Application for a licence from Aldwych International for the generation and sale of electricity,” a statement read [entry ends here].
biomass :: bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: Africa :: Uganda ::
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home