A consortium composed of EDF and Scatec, with its venture partners British International Investment (BII) and Norfund, has officially been named project lead developer of the Mpatamanga hydropower project in Malawi, with a binding commercial agreement signed yesterday with the Government of Malawi (GOM) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC)
The agreement, signed under Malawi’s Public-Private Partnership framework, concludes the selection process undertaken by the Government of Malawi to competitively select a private sector partner to finance, build, and operate the hydropower plant. IFC worked closely with the Government of Malawi to support the early-stage project development and provided funding for activities that allowed the government to launch the competitive tender process.
Located on the Shire River, the 350MW facility will be a first-of-its-kind in Malawi and will double the ouble the installed capacity of hydropower in the country. The generation facility is composed of two plants – a 309MW peaking plant and a 41MW downstream plant. The project is expected to contribute to reducing energy shortages and enhancing energy security in Malawi.
Scatec, and its venture partners BII and Norfund, and EDF are majority shareholders in the project and will own 55% of the project, split equally between them. EDF will own 27.5%, while Scatec has an ownership of 14%, and the venture partners the remaining 13.5%. The Government of Malawi will own 30%, and IFC 15% of the total project shareholding.
