Gigawatt Renewables Zambia Limited

Company Description

Gigawatt Global Coöperatief U.A. is a multinational renewable energy company focused on the development and management of utility-scale solar fields in emerging markets.

With over 1000 MW of renewable energy projects in our pipeline worldwide, Gigawatt Global brings extensive experience in all aspects of project finance and development. Gigawatt Global has been focused on solar PV projects since its founding, and entered the wind market in late 2016, with the creation of Gigawatt Global Wind, in partnership with investor Ilan Goldstein, a pioneer in the wind energy field, and acquired a hydro project under development in 2016.

Gigawatt Global is committed to accelerating energy sustainability and independence in each local region it operates. In pursuit of this goal, Gigawatt Global’s strategy is to partner with energy financial partners, governments, development groups and institutions to structure socially responsible investments.

Countries of Operation

Zambia, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Burundi, Nigeria, USA, South Sudan

Ownership of Company

EU Company with Local Operations

Number of years since incorporated

7 (Gigawatt Renewables Zambia Limited only)

Project Pitch

Gigawatt Global 71 MW Hybrid Wind/Solar Project. Gigawatt Renewables Zambia Limited was incorporated on 30 May 2018, to be the special project company for the establishment of a solarwind hybrid plant project in Chibombo District. Gigawatt Renewables Ltd is owned 100% by Gigawatt Global Cooperatief U.A., registered in the Netherlands. Gigawatt Global signed a land lease option agreement with Kambwese Farm, a commercial farm currently cultivating wheat and soya crops and cattle ranching. A wind mast was installed on the land in 2017 by the Renewable Energy Resource Mapping (ESMAP) program, led by World Bank Group and its partners. This is the best performing mast in Zambia, with data collected at 80m, and the site, essentially flat and situated at high elevation (1180m), is suitable for solar PV and wind. A solar yield assessment has been performed by DNV GL for the site design. Satelite solar resource data was used with an estimated yearly GHI of 2,184 kWh/m2, and the average yearly temperature on site is 20.8 °C. The solar field will have a capacity of 40 MWp AC, with 48.2 MWp DC installed on eastwest orienting trackers. There will be two 33 kV circuits for the wind farm and two for the solar farm. The two wind circuits and the two solar circuits will connect to a 45 MVA transformer each, to step up the voltage from 33 kV to 132 kV at the onsite substation at the southeast corner of the project site. The offtaker for the electricity is the governmentowned power utility, ZESCO, which is responsible for electricity distribution, and produces 80% of the electricity in Zambia. The time from financial close (FC) to Commercial Operation Date (COD) for the hybrid plant is expected to be 18 months, including both the wind and solar components together with the grid interconnection. The plant life has been estimated at 25 years. The total estimated cost for the development of the project is $90 million. The project is open for FDI through majority stake.

Team

The construction phase will have an estimated 600 workers on site at the height of the construction, with an average of 250 workers throughout the construction period. During the 20-year operational period, 35 full- time skilled and semi-skilled workers drawn from the local population for the operations, maintenance, and security needs of the project. The project is focused on giving preference for employment to the communities surrounding the site if the required skill level is available, and there is a target of a minimum participation of at least 30% of women to be employed during construction and operational periods.

Stage

Preliminary | Initial studies completed

Annual Revenue (in EUR)

Not indicated

Number of employees

Projected employees: 600

Total Project Cost (in USD)

USD 90,000,000

Financing needs (in USD)

USD 90,000,000

Type of financing needed

Not indicated

Planned allocation of fundraising capital

Greenfield (new activity for the company)