GHANA – Axcon Energy, a Clean energy solutions company, has finally launched the construction of a solar photovoltaic power plant in Ghana’s newly built Appolonia City.
The construction of the solar power plants is starting nearly a year after signing an agreement with city’s administration.
The plant, which will be built in the Appolonia Industrial Park, will have a capacity of 5 MWp, and will contribute towards the reinforcement of the electricity network of this new city with a capacity of 100,000 inhabitants.
Solar energy is poised to become an important source of renewable energy in Ghana despite of the country having an energy surplus of about 1000MW.
The nation has good solar power potential, with solar irradiation levels ranging between 4.5 to 6.0 kWh/m2 per day.
The government however implemented a capacity restriction of 20MWp per individual plant and 150MWp aggregate on solar PV plants without storage systems that were to be connected to the national transmission system to match projected capacity to projected demand.
At 5MWp, the Appolonia City Solar photovoltaic power plant is well within the range of the 20MWp restriction by the Ghanaian government and thus at a vantage position of being seamlessly connected to the national grid.
“The new solar power plant will meet the city’s changing needs and will provide clean and reliable energy, especially for the companies in the Appolonia Industrial Park.”
Pascal Siamey – Chairman and CEO of Axcon Energy.
The solar power will be connected on the 11kV side of the dedicated 33/11kV substation within Appolonia City.
The power will then be distributed to homes and industrial clients through Appolonia City’s electricity distribution network.
Appolonia City already receives supply from the national grid via a 33kv overhead line, serving a dedicated 60MVA primary substation.
Appolonia City is the result of a real estate project developed on an area of more than 940 hectares 28 km north-east of the Ghanaian capital Accra.
The city is made up of 25,000 housing units that can accommodate up to 100,000 people, an industrial park covering an area of nearly 81 hectares, a business district, and 121 hectares of public parks and gardens.
Officials of the new city estimate that it is capable of attracting at least 30,000 visitors per day.
According to Appolonia City, in addition to the clean energy supplier Axcon Energy, other local and international companies are also developing facilities in its industrial park.
These include MainOne, Nickseth Construction, Alusynco, Crownhouse Construction & Logistics, Puma Energy and Total Ghana, the subsidiary of French energy company Total.
Liked this article? Subscribe to DealStreet Africa News, our regular email newsletter with the latest news, deals and insights from Africa’s business, economy and more. SUBSCRIBE HERE
