Globeleq, a prominent independent power producer in Africa, has reached financial close on the Kafue Solar project, a 40 MWac (56 MWp) solar photovoltaic power plant near Kafue Town, Lusaka Province, Zambia.
The project was awarded through the GET FiT Zambia Programme and will sell its power to ZESCO Ltd, the Zambian national power utility, under a 25-year power purchase agreement. The GET FiT initiative, led by Zambia’s ministry of Energy in collaboration with the German Development Bank (KfW), aims to catalyse private sector investment in small and medium-scale renewable energy projects.
Globeleq is the sole owner of the project and will manage construction, asset management, and operations & maintenance. Long-term project finance was provided by FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, and British International Investment (BII), which together committed USD 52.1 million, with Standard Bank South Africa acting as security trustee. The project also benefits from a grant facility from the Norwegian Agency for Development Co-operation to fund a portion of the grid connection works and certain upgrade works at ZESCO’s Kafue Town substation.
Solarcentury Africa was appointed by Globeleq as technical development partner and provided technical expertise in support of the project’s development led by Globeleq. It has subsequently been appointed as EPC contractor in consortium with Alensy Energy Solutions Zambia.
Once in operation, Kafue Solar is expected to avoid approximately 48 000 tonnes annually in CO2 emissions. The project anticipated to create around 200 employment opportunities for local Zambians during peak construction and, once operational, will provide a range of long-term job opportunities.
Jonathan Hoffman, CEO of Globeleq, commented: “The Kafue Solar project highlights how partnership between the private sector and public partners like ZESCO can help deliver Zambia’s economic and energy ambitions. By strengthening the grid in a key industrial region, it will support growth, enable more reliable power for businesses and communities, and contribute to a more sustainable, lower-carbon energy system. As Globeleq’s first greenfield project in Zambia, we look forward to delivering it alongside our partners.”
