SkyPower Global has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Zambia’s state-owned utility, ZESCO Ltd, to deliver 1,000 MW of photovoltaic power.
The PPA will support the Green Giant Zambia project, which is expected to supply electricity to around 4 million homes, boost job creation and add more renewable energy to Zambia’s copper mining-based economy.
“The Green Giant Zambia project is a crucial component of our Integrated Renewable Energy Plan, especially in the context of our current drought due to climate change. This initiative aims to substantially increase our renewable capacity to address current and future energy needs, as Zambia aims to increase industrial productivity and fulfill our aspiration of reaching more than 3 million metric tons of annual copper production,” President Hakainde Hichilema said in the press release.
No details about the project were revealed. The initiative resembles SkyPower’s 1,000 MW RDC Green Giant project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which progressed from the PPA between the Canada-based company and state utility SNEL to the first phase development agreement of 200 MW earlier this year.
Welcoming the investment in solar energy made by the UAE’s Masdar last year, Hichilema said Zambia had developed only 3,500 MW of generating capacity since gaining independence.
