On behalf of the Mozambican state electricity company, EDM, international consulting and engineering company Pöyry is to carry out an investigation into the building of a 200 km long power line between the cities of Massinga and Vilanculos along the southeastern coast of Mozambique.
The project is part of US president Obama’s Power Africa initiative to secure an electricity supply for an estimated 500 000 people in the region, and is one of the first bilateral commitments between the Initiative and foreign donors.
In Mozambique, despite the country’s considerable hydropower resources, 17 million people lack direct access to electricity from the national grid and experience power cuts on a regular basis, causing frequent disruption, hindering the development of both the economy and industry, whilst limiting access to health care and education. The issue of access to electricity is particularly acute in rural areas. Expanding the electricity supply is therefore a central part of Mozambique’s poverty reduction policies.
Pöyry’s assignment will initially include calculating electricity demand in the region, drawing up the preliminary route and design for the transmission line and conducting an environmental impact study. It will then comprise a cost estimation, financial analysis, risk analysis, as well as a systems study of stability, reliability, failure analysis and load flows.
