Namibia's hunt for alternative energy sources becomes dire

Namibia's need to find an alternative source of power is becoming more urgent than ever.
Six years since the last studies were done, power utility company NamPower has just awarded a contract for an environmental assessment and management plan for the proposed gas-fired Kudu Power Plant at Oranjemund.

CSIR Environmentek, a South African company, has been mandated to carry out the environmental assessment to be completed as soon as the end of July. The public will also be given the opportunity to raise their viewpoints and concerns about the project at four meetings to be held in Windhoek, Alexander Bay, Oranjemund and Rosh Pinah.
NamPower says that continued supply from South Africa, from which it imports up to 60 % of its supply during winter, could prove problematic by 2007. NamPower's Chief Technical Advisor Reiner Jagau said that the company was directing a lot of its resources into the project as the need to find alternative energy sources for the country becomes more dire.

Pre-feasibility studies on the company's other possible power-generating option, Popa Falls, will also officially be made public.
Jagau said the board had taken no decision on how it plans to proceed with the project, following the Okavango River Basin Water Commission (Okacom) approval in April to start on full-scale feasibility studies to gauge the viability of a hydro-power scheme near Divundu. He said a decision would depend on input from various affected and concerned parties.

With South Africa pressed by its own domestic energy demands, Namibia could face paying much higher charges for imports in future. The country's power demands have grown by nearly 60 % in the past 11 years -- estimated to be approximately 540 MW by 2012, up from the current 378 MW.
In addition to meeting NamPower's projected demand, electricity generated at Kudu of about 800 MW could be exported to South Africa. Previous studies identified Oranjemund, project Site D, as the most viable option for the building of the gas-fired station.

The EIA now underway will only focus on the construction and operation of the plant in this area and the pipelines going out from the site. It does not include components of the development upstream, the gas field, pipelines from the gas field, gas conditioning plant, nor construction of power lines from the power station.
Drilling gas wells in 1996, proved that there were sufficient proven natural gas reserves some 170 km offshore to support the plant for at least 20 years. Site D is on degraded, mined-out land within the high-security mining area.

The preliminary environmental assessment found corrosion from salt spray, access to the site, the power line route from the plant and matters related to construction as the main constraints hindering the construction of a power plant at this site.
Counting in its favour is its distance from the proposed Orange River Mouth Wetland Park and lower impact on the ecology of the area and to the marine environment.