The German government, through the KfW bank, has announced financial support of 17 million euros for the construction and rehabilitation of the Lichinga and Cuamba mini-hydro plants in Niassa province, northern Mozambique.
Speaking after the signing of the agreement with the Mozambican government, the Ambassador of the Republic of Germany to Mozambique, Ronald Münch, pointed out that the Multi-Technological Renewable Energy Project in Cuamba and Lichinga modernizes the existing hydroelectric power stations and provides additional solar photovoltaic power generation capacity.
“This will improve the energy supply to the population of Niassa province, especially in the cities of Cuamba and Lichinga. It is a great honor for me to witness the signing of this financing agreement to support the rehabilitation and increase in capacity of the Cuamba and Lichinga hydroelectric plants, EDM’s only two hydroelectric plants in the north of the country,” added Ronald Münch, quoted in the publication published on the Ministry of Finance’s website, stressing that the project to be carried out by Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) makes use of locally available and climate-friendly renewable energy in the country.
On the occasion, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Domingos Lambo, representing the Minister of Finance, said that the mobilization of funding for the materialization of the rehabilitation and expansion of mini-hydro plants in Niassa province will certainly “contribute to the improvement of economic activity services by local operators, as well as access to alternative energies for local populations within the framework of the pillars of structural transformation of the economy, social and demographic transformation and governance”.
In his capacity as project manager, the chairman of EDM’s Board of Directors, Joaquim Ou-chim, stressed that EDM, as the implementing agency, recognizes the relevance and impact of the German government’s support for the country’s electrification, as a result of the continued efforts to mobilize funds by the Mozambican Executive, through the Ministries of Finance and Mineral Resources and Energy.
“With this funding, the rehabilitation and modernization of these infrastructures will increase energy production from the current 3,000 to 3,900 MegaWatt hours (MWh) per year. Furthermore, the intervention in the mini-hydroelectric plants will contribute to the stability of the electricity system, particularly in Niassa province, bearing in mind that the northern region depends only on a single power transmission line from the Matambo substation in Tete,” he concluded.