By Wallace Mawire
Vice-President of Rosatom Central and Southern Africa, Viktor
Polikarpov
Rosatom, Russian Federation’s national nuclear corporation that
comprises more than 350 nuclear industry companies and institutions
recently presented its innovative Mini-hydro solutions to a number of
high level delegates and Madagascan industry during the inaugural
Madagascar Renewable Energy and Power Infrastructure Investors
Conference held in Antananarivo.
Speaking on the side-lines of the two day conference, regional
Vice-President of Rosatom Central and Southern Africa, Viktor
Polikarpov noted that although Madagascar is endowed with an abundance
of natural resources and has the potential to generate 7,800 megawatts
(MW) of electric power from hydropower sources, only a fraction is
currently being utilized, this according to the latest Madagascar
Energy Sector Overview.
The government of Madagascar aims to improve the country’s economy as
well as living conditions under its Madagascar Action Plan (MAP), but
the country currently faces challenges in the power sector. As a
result, Madagascar’s government is working to expand its electricity
supply and encourage investment in the energy sector to stimulate the
economy.
The country currently produces 356 MW (hydro) and 150 MW (thermal) of
installed generation capacity to serve a population of more than 24
million people. The annual consumption of electricity per capita is
estimated at 48.53 kWh, less than one-third of the average for
Sub-Saharan African countries excluding South Africa.
Mr. Polikarpov explained that the simple and cost-efficient,
mini-hydro power plants (HPP) would be an ideal solution for
Madagascar considering the country’s huge hydro potential. “The
self-contained containerized units can be used in areas that are not
connected to the main power grid for financial or technical reasons
and can serve either as independent power sources or as an alternative
to cost – inefficient and non-eco-friendly fossil fuel generators.”
The units which do not require the construction of a dam and have no
impact on the environment of rivers and other water bodies are easy to
install in very remote areas. Thanks to their innovative design,
mini-HPPs can even be installed at discharge channels of water
treatment facilities or in-line at mining and industrial facilities.
“Each mini HPP consists of a turbine and a set of auxiliary equipment
mounted inside a standard shipping container. The containerized design
drastically reduces lead-in times and costs of construction,”
concluded Polikarpov.
