Congo to commence construction of 40,000MW Inga hydro project

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is gearing up to commence the development of 40,000MW Grand Inga hydropower project in October 2015.

DRC has also stated that it is seeking a developer to begin first phase, Inga 3 Low Head, which is estimated to have the power generation capacity of 4,800MW.

The government released a statement following a meeting with Republic of South Africa (RSA) to discuss the issues such as the selection process, the perimeter, structuring, financing and to determine role of each stakeholder.

DRC Minister Bruno Kapandji Kalala said the meeting helped the authorities to clear the obstacles blocking the commencement of project.

“Inga is a factor for integration, at both a regional and international level,” added Kalala.

Grand Inga is expected to provide more than half of the continent with renewable energy at a low price, according to the statement.

Meanwhile, the RSA will procure 2,500MW of power capacity of the first phase as per its arrangement with Congo to become principal purchaser.

RSA Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Energy Garrith Bezuidenhoudt said: “We have affirmed our commitment to the project by already provisioning for this purchase in our budgetary plan,” says, of the Republic of South Africa.”

The three consortia, which is currently seeking the development contract, include Sinohydro and Three Gorges from China – the operator of the Three Gorges Chinese dam, currently the world’s largest; Actividades de Construccion y Servicios (ACS), Eurofinsa and AEE from Spain; and the Daewoo-Posco-SNC Lavalin consortium from Korea and Canada.

African Development Bank Energy Environment and Climate Change Department director Hela Cheikhrouhou remarked: “The question of financing is a major issue in the selection process. It is the public/private partnership financing solutions which will be vital for the success of the project.”

Inga 3 High-Head, the second phase of the project is expected to add 3,000MW of capacity, followed by installation of five other plants on the same dam to provide a capacity of 40,000MW.