Ncondezi gets updated land use deal for Mozambique solar project

9th Jan 2023 12:51

(Sharecast News) - Ncondezi Energy updated the market on its 300MW solar photovoltaic and battery energy storage system (BESS) project in Tete, Mozambique on Monday.

The AIM-traded firm said an updated land use agreement, or 'Direito do Uso e Aproveitamento da Terra' (DUAT), had been received from the Mozambican government.

It said the DUAT granted exclusive use for solar power plant operations at the preferred site, and covered an area of 950 hectares, sufficient for up to 500MW.

"Following confirmation of excellent solar resources at our preferred solar project site location in Tete, Mozambique, we have upgraded our existing exclusive land use rights, DUAT, for the generation of power from solar energy," said chief executive officer Hanno Pengilly.

"This is a critical permitting requirement for the project, reflecting both strong local support and the expedited process we are executing since announcing the positive feasibility study last October."

Pengilly said an update on the firm's preferred transmission solution to connect to the Mozambican grid was expected in the next two months.

"The solar project is strategically positioned from a transmission perspective, having access to existing grid networks with available capacity and multiple evacuation paths in Mozambique and the wider southern Africa region."

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.