Image: FindallNews
South Africa has expressed interest to potentially double the amount of electricity it plans to buy from the Democratic Republic of Congo-based (DRC) Grand Inga Hydropower plant.
South Africa is a key project partner, having signed the Grand Inga Hydropower Project Treaty in 2013.
According to Bloomberg, South Africa’s Energy Minister, Jeff Radebe, stated in a letter to DRC Agency for the Development and Promotion of Grand Inga head, Bruno Kapandji, that it wants to increase its offtake from the hydropower project from 2,5000MW to 5,000MW.
Radebe stressed that finalizing the agreement would be subject to certain conditions including a tariff of $30/MWh, excluding transmission costs, and South Africa securing buyers for some of the electricity from within the Southern African Power Pool before the end of 2019.
The necessary cabinet approvals for the agreement are expected by the end of the first quarter, he said.
