On track to grow Mozambique’s electricity output

October 24, 2024

Christo Opperman, executive director and chairman of Kuvaninga Energia, and Estevão Mussuei, general manager, talk to The Energy Year about securing a larger supply of gas to increase the plant’s electricity output and ongoing plans to improve efficiency by incorporating renewables and new generation technologies. Kuvaninga Energia is a 40-MW single-cycle, gas-fired power plant located in Chokwe, Mozambique.

How much electricity is Kuvaninga Energia currently supplying to the grid?
Christo OPPERMAN: The power plant has been operating on a stable basis, with limited downtime and supplying electricity as contracted with EDM, the National electricity company, effectively 38.5 MW. We have a redundant agent in place that serves as a backup to cover any faults we may have during downtime.
Our gas supply is limited under the royalty gas programme to 3 million GJ [79.2 mcm] per year, all used to generate electricity. Initially, we wanted to expand the plant to 80 MW, but given the limitations, we will first need to embark on a gasfield development project.
We have requested a larger gas allocation in the meantime, and we are also looking at alternative energy sources to power our operations. This will require renegotiating our framework agreement with EDM, and we are exploring how to combine both projects. Feasibility studies are already under way and we have carried out a preliminary internal selection of EPC contractors.

Can you give us an overview of the plant’s financial standing?
CO: We have done our full capital outlay and have a positive balance sheet, positive cash flow and positive returns for our shareholders. We are repaying senior debt on the project. The plant has been profitable for the last five years, and it continues to be. Of course, with a major overhaul planned in 2025, we do expect profitability to go down slightly. From that point onward, however, we will align again with our expected returns.

 

What are some of the technologies employed in the power plant?
CO: Since this is still a normal baseload plant, we are in the initial stages of technology deployment. There are 10 engines which generate 4 MWh each, but we are looking into efficiency improvements. The massive heat waves we experience in this area make it challenging to remain efficient, and making the engines more economical will require adopting different technologies. Given that we have a fixed tolling agreement with EDM there is little more we can do to achieve that.

Does Kuvaninga Energia participate in any programmes to protect the environment or engage with the local community?
CO: Our agreement with EDM establishes limits on our emissions and the resources we consume. We conduct biennial audits, both internal and external, to ensure that we comply with environmental standards. All our audits so far have been clean and we have been quick to address any issues that have popped up.

Estevão MUSSUEI: Our engagement with the local community is positive, especially with the local leaders. Before we implement any projects, we ensure we have their support. We meet with the local community twice a year. The objective of the first meeting is to understand their needs and decide together on the social projects we want to carry out to address them. The second meeting is a progress check to verify that implementation is on track and aligned with the goals we had set out.

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