Infrastructure news from around the continent

NIGERIA

Modernising Flour Mills’ power generation facilities

Technology group Wärtsilä will supply fuelflexible dual-fuel engines to extend, improve and modernise power generation for a captive power plant at Nigeria’s oldest and largest food and agro-allied company, Flour Mills Nigeria.

The company’s Lagos-based power plant is needed to ensure sufficient capacity and a reliable electricity supply around the clock to meet its food production requirements, and commitments to its customers.

Wärtsilä has received two orders. The first order comprises a nine-cylinder Wärtsilä 34DF dual-fuel engine generator set and is an extension to the existing generating capacity provided by a similar Wärtsilä engine generator set that has been successfully operating since 2017. The second order comprises a 12-cylinder Wärtsilä 34DF engine generator set and is intended to replace an existing, inefficient mono-fuel generating asset in the plant with efficient dual-fuel generating capacity as part of Flour Mills Nigeria’s captive power plant modernisation plans.

The Nigerian government’s Vision 30:30:30 document for the power sector aims to achieve a capacity of 30 000 MW of electricity by the year 2030, with at least 30% being supplied from renewable energy sources. The selection of fast-starting and -stopping Wärtsilä engines means that, should the customer have access to solar or wind power in the future, these engine generator sets can provide smart backup generation to balance the fluctuating supply from renewables.

Wärtsilä holds a leading position in supplying flexible power generation to West Africa, with 4 792 MW of capacity installed, of which 667 MW is in Nigeria. Wärtsilä has operated in the country since 2010 and has around 90 employees locally.

ETHIOPIA

Boost to youth employment and crosscountry electricity trade

The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group and the Ethiopian government have signed two separate grant agreements: • US$47 million (R697 million) towards an industrial parks and youth project that will see the development of irrigation and water management infrastructure around the Integrated Agro-Industrial Parks.

This will offer opportunities for graduate

‘agri-preneurs’ to establish agro-related, commercially viable businesses. • $71 million (R1.05 billion) towards the Ethiopia-Djibouti Second Power

Interconnection Project, which aims to boost electricity trade between Ethiopia and neighbouring Djibouti. With the Agro-Industrial Parks, the Arab Bank for Economic Development is also providing financing of about $50 million (R741 million), in addition to a $5.2 million (R81.5 million) contribution from the Ethiopian government itself. The programme entails the development of 12 607 ha of irrigated land, while 3 000 youths will receive agronomic and business development training. Irrigation infrastructure will: strengthen water users’ associations; protect the watershed areas around the irrigation schemes; go towards training farmers and youth agri-preneurs on soil and water conservation practices, agricultural production, value addition and marketing; and support established youth SMEs to access credit.

The Ethiopia-Djibouti Second Power Interconnection Project involves the construction of about 300 km of interconnector lines, as well as 170 km of transmission lines to reinforce the network within Ethiopia, and the new construction and expansion of substations in the two countries. In Djibouti, expected benefits include a 65% increase in customer connections and a sharp reduction in the use of thermal generation plants from 100% to around 16%. In Ethiopia, the project should lead to higher incomes.

SENEGAL

Replacing 316 km of water distribution pipeline

The Société Nationale des Eaux du Sénégal (Sones) is working with Sen’Eau, the company that operates and distributes drinking water in urban and peri-urban areas, to replace 316 km of pipes in the drinking water distribution network in the city of Dakar.

This will save approximately 45 000 m3 of water and improve the distribution of drinking water from various plants. Work will begin once negotiations with the concessionaires are finished and the international call for tenders has been completed.

ZIMBABWE

Solar power for 15 Total service stations

Distributed Power Africa, a subsidiary of the Econet Global group, has begun installing solar panels at Total service stations in Zimbabwe.

Total Zimbabwe, the subsidiary of French oil company Total Energies, wants to reduce the dependence of its service stations on the public electricity grid and be better equipped to cope with load-shedding. During load-shedding, Total Zimbabwe has had to turn to generators that are more expensive to maintain and operate. The company estimates that the adoption of solar photovoltaic energy will enable its service stations to reduce their dependence on the national electricity grid and diesel generators by 30%. It will also enable the petroleum distributor to reduce its electricity bills.

In Zimbabwe, the oil company has 101 service stations that currently operate on grid electricity or diesel generators. Total Energies wants to equip 5 000 of its service stations with solar photovoltaic systems in 57 countries – most of them in Africa. These installations will have a cumulative capacity of 200 MWp, against a total investment of US$300 million (R4.44 billion).

ZAMBIA

Lusaka Sanitation Programme gets funding support

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the KfW Development Bank have provided €102.5 million (R1.78 billion) and €33 million (R572 million) respectively to the Lusaka Sanitation Programme. This will support the transformation of public health in the Zambian capital through improved access to sanitation for 525 000 families, the expansion of wastewater treatment at two new plants in Chunga and Ngwerere, and the construction of 520 km of sewerage pipes. Access rates to safe sanitation are not increasing fast enough, and boosting the wastewater treatment capacity in Lusaka will form the backbone for upscaling access to safe sanitation and hygiene, particularly for poor households. The Lusaka Sanitation Programme will reduce the prevalence of waterborne disease and pollution in local rivers.

MOZAMBIQUE

US$1.8 billion to improve urban drinking water supply

Mozambique's Water Supply Investment and Participation Fund (Fipag) states that an investment of US$1.8 billion (R26.7 billion) will make it possible to guarantee drinking water services for between four and five million people in Mozambique’s major cities. For the moment, the rate of access to drinking water in Mozambique is 54%. To reach its water supply target, Fipag also intends to reduce losses from the current 47% to 30% by 2024.

The Mozambican Ministry of Public Works, Housing and Water Resources has set up a 10-year investment programme, comprising projects that aim to strengthen the resilience of urban communities against the effects of climate change that have negatively impacted Mozambique in recent years.