Praia, Sept. 6, 2024 (Lusa) — Cabo Verde's first pumped storage hydroelectric power station will start operating by 2028. Its power output is equivalent to more than a quarter of the largest (fuel-fired) power station on the island of Santiago.
The plant to be installed in Chão Gonçalves, in the municipality of Ribeira Grande de Santiago, "will have a maximum power of 20 megawatts (MW) and a reservoir close to 330,000 cubic metres of water," said Cabo Verde's Director of Industry, Trade and Energy, Rito Évora, on a visit to the project site today, predicting the start of production by 2028.
The visit was part of the programme of the European Union's (EU) Deputy Director for International Partnerships, Myriam Ferran, and the Vice-President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Ambroise Fayolle, representatives of the project's funding bodies, as part of the Global Gateway initiative.
The global financing agreements were signed on Wednesday in Praia with the Cabo Verde's government.
The power plant, in particular, will be supported to around €60 million and will be the "main part of the country's strategy to achieve the target of at least 54% renewable penetration by 2030," said Rito Évora.
Currently, the country's largest power station, in Palmarejo, Praia, on the island of Santiago, runs on fuel and has a capacity of 71 MW.
In the new project, water pumping will make it possible to store renewable energy that would otherwise be wasted and ensure that it has an additional reserve in hydroelectric power.
For example, wind energy produced at off-peak times (i.e. at night) will pump water back into the reservoirs, which will then be discharged to drive the turbines and produce electricity when needed (usually at peak times during the day).
There will be reservoirs to ensure "at least 160 megawatt-hours (Mwh) of energy", said Rito Évora.
"It will serve as an energy store. We'll store it and use it when needed," he said.
With the funding in place, the selection phase for companies to prepare the project is underway.
"This is an important stage: a huge and complex project. I don't think anything on this scale has been done in Cabo Verde before," emphasised Rito Évora.
He said Cabo Verde hopes to "achieve the goals set in terms of energy transition, with more competitive prices for consumers, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel imports'.
"This project is expected to reduce fuel consumption by 22% by 2030," he added.
Myriam Ferran and Ambroise Fayolle, who ended their three-day visit to Cabo Verde on Thursday, hope that' through the production of more energy from renewable sources, there will be benefits for the whole population".
"For us, it's crucial to see, on the ground, where a project we're funding will be created. To see the environment and the communities that will potentially benefit and realise the magnitude of the work," said Myriam Ferran.
Cabo Verde's first pumped hydroelectric power station is part of a series of investments supported by Brussels in Cabo Verde.
On Wednesday, the archipelago signed the country's largest financial package of EU support, worth €300 million.
ROZS/ADB // ADB.
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