Soroti Solar Power Station

The Soroti Power Station is a 10 MW (13,000 hp) solar power plant in Uganda.[1][3][5] It is the largest grid-connected, "privately-funded solar power plant in Sub-Saharan Africa, outside of South Africa".[6]

Soroti Solar Power Station
CountryUganda
LocationSoroti, Soroti District[1]
Coordinates01°40′02″N 33°43′10″E
StatusOperational
Construction beganDecember 2015[2][3]
Commission date12 December 2016[4]
Owner(s)Access Power MEA (Access Uganda Solar) & TSK Electrónica y Electricidad
Solar farm
TypeFlat-panel PV
Power generation
Nameplate capacity10 MW (13,000 hp)

Location

The power station is located in Soroti District east of the town of Soroti in the Eastern Region of Uganda, approximately 300 kilometres (190 mi) by road north-east of Kampala, the country's capital and largest city.[1][7]

Overview

The power station has a 10 megawatt capacity. Its output is sold directly to the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited for integration into the national grid. The power is evacuated via a substation near the station. It has been estimated that the energy generated could power approximately 40,000 homes located near the station, thereby minimizing transmission losses.[8] The power station, which consists of 32,680 photovoltaic panels, is Uganda's first grid-connected solar plant.[9] The power station sits on 33 acres (13 ha) of land.[10]

Developers

The power station was developed by a consortium of Access Power MEA (through its subsidiary Access Uganda Solar), a company based in the United Arab Emirates,[11][12][13] and TSK Electrónica y Electricidad, a company based in Spain. They won the competitive bidding and were awarded the development contract at the same time as the developers of the Tororo Solar Power Station.[14]

Construction costs, funding, and commissioning

The construction costs were US$19 million.[9] The project received partial funding from the European Union Infrastructure Trust Fund through KfW.[15] On 12 December 2016, the solar plant was switched on.[4][16]

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See also

References
  1. Muhumuza, Rodney (9 August 2016). "In Uganda, solar power plant amid African bush inspires hope". Associated Press. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  2. NAPE (June 2016). "Sh60b Soroti solar project nears completion". Kampala: National Organisation of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE). Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  3. Graves, LeAnne (17 February 2016). "Dubai's Access Power to build 10MW solar plant in Uganda". The National (Abu Dhabi). Retrieved 23 February 2016.
  4. Biryabarema, Elias (12 December 2016). "Uganda starts up first solar power plant in bid to tap renewables". Reuters.com. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  5. ERA (29 January 2016). "Access Uganda Solar Limited achieves Financial Close". Kampala: Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA). Retrieved 29 February 2016.
  6. REF News (19 February 2016). "Construction to begin on East Africa's largest solar project". Renewable Energy Focus (REF). Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  7. Globefeed.com) (24 January 2016). "Distance between Kampala, Central Region, Uganda and Soroti, Eastern Region, Uganda". Globefeed.com. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  8. Martin, Miguel (15 December 2014). "Two Teams Selected for Ugandan Solar Power Plants". IPPJournal.Com. Archived from the original on 29 December 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  9. ESI-Africa (13 December 2016). "Uganda: Soroti solar power plant comes online". ESI-Africa.com. Retrieved 15 December 2016.
  10. Asiimwe, Dicta (13 December 2016). "Uganda's first 10MW solar plant comes online". The EastAfrican. Nairobi. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  11. Smith, Matt (9 June 2015). "Access Infra to launch In Uganda, grow across Africa". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  12. Sambo, John (18 January 2015). "$500m set for African renewable power". East African Business Week. Kampala. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  13. "ACCESS POWER TO DEVELOP SOLAR ENERGY PLANT IN UGANDA", Access Power MEA, 27 November 2015, accessed 3 October 2016
  14. Biryabarema, Elias (10 December 2014). "Four firms to build 20 MW solar power plants in Uganda". Reuters.com. Retrieved 15 August 2016.
  15. Marks, Jon (15 December 2014). "ERA and GET FiT announce the first 20 MW of Solar Photovoltaic (PV) projects to be developed In Uganda". Africa Investment Exchange. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  16. Otage, Stephen (12 December 2016). "Soroti Solar Plant a big success, donors say". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
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