The Malilangwe Trust and Sustainable Agriculture Technology in Zimbabwe have invited bids for the selection of a company to provide engineering, design, procurement and construction (EPC) services for a 4.5 MWp solar PV plant in the country. The plant will be located 30 km from Chiredzi, a town in Masvingo province. The last date to submit bids in June 30, 2021.
The selected EPC contractor will implement the project in several phases. In the first phase, the contractor will set up a 400 kWp unit with a 560 kWp Tesla Li-Ion battery storage system. This unit will also house a transformer with all connections and a 33 kV power line. The second unit will have a capacity of 1.1 MWp while the third phase of the project will have 3 MWp of capacity. The electricity produced by the first two units will be sold to the private sector under a power purchase agreement while the power from the third unit will be sold to the Zimbabwe Electricity and Distribution Company grid under an agreement with the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority.
The contractor will also have the option to invest in the solar plant through a Build, Own, Operate, and Transfer contract. Under the contract, the transfer will take place after 15 years. Phases 1 and 2 there will have the option for a 47 per cent stake in the agreement and in phase 3 there will be an option for a 33.3 per cent stake.
In April 2021, The government of Zimbabwe announced its intention to exempt investors in solar energy from paying taxes for a period of five years. The move is targeted at attracting investment from solar energy producers in the country. The proposal will also complement other measures taken by the Zimbabwean government, such as the duty-free import of solar energy production equipment.