The Mozambican Energy Fund (Funae) on Tuesday is scheduled to present a portfolio of renewable energy projects worth an estimated US$500 million to help ensure that by 2030 the Mozambican population has full access to electricity, according to a statement issued on Monday in Maputo.
The statement cited by Mozambican state news agency AIM said the project portfolio provides for electrification through the use of solar and hydro sources, covering the provinces of Maputo, Gaza and Inhambane (south), Sofala, Manica, Tete and Zambézia (central Mozambique) and Nampula, Niassa and Cabo Delgado (north of the country).
The project portfolio identifies potential sites for the implementation of projects based on “solar power, hydro power and/or combined (hybrid), taking into account the availability of energy resources in each location,” said the statement, with the initiative, ensuring that within 15 years the Mozambican population will have access to electricity using models of systems outside the national grid, namely micro, mini-networks and small autonomous systems.
Last May, Funae and Portuguese group Galp Energia signed a partnership agreement for a project to set up photovoltaic systems in schools, health centres and communities in the provinces of Maputo, Sofala, Manica and Cabo Delgado provinces.
The initiative has an estimated budget of 40 million meticais, with activities expected to take place over a period of two years.
From 2005 to 2014, more than 3.7 million Mozambicans living in rural areas benefitted from solar energy systems, including 201 towns, 669 schools, 623 health centres and 77 public buildings being electrified.
