Namibia’s state-owned power utility Nam Power has awarded Alstom Hydro and Andritz Hydro a contract for equipment that will expand the output of the Ruacana hydropower plant.
The two companies will supply the electro-mechanical equipment and penstocks for a new 92 MW turbine-generator unit at the plant, which accounts for around 80 per cent of Namibia’s electricity generation.
The new unit will serve as the Ruacana plant’s main operating unit and represents Nam Power’s first major power plant investment for several years. The project will help to meet growing energy demand in Namibia and help to reduce the country’s dependence on energy imports.
Alstom’s scope of supply comprises one generator set, excitation system, control and protection system and electrical auxiliary systems, as well as the connection to the existing plant. The consortium will handle the turnkey installation, commissioning and testing of the new unit, which will start commercial operation in March 2012.
