The City of Windhoek (CoW) has secured two loans totaling N$155 million from the Development Bank of Namibia (DBN) to fund its shortfall to finance the N$228-million Khomas intake substation project to ensure additional capacity to support the City’s forecasted power demand.
“Council has already paid N$72 million to NamPower with a shortfall of N$155 million. The Municipal Council of Windhoek then approached the Development Bank of Namibia as a strategic financing partner to fund the shortfall (N$155 million) on this project which was accepted and approved by Council in 2021 as per Council Resolution 159/08/2021,” Chairperson of the Management Committee Councillor Illse Keister said on Monday.
This comes as the forecasted power demand for Windhoek is expected to exceed the current notified maximum demand of 190MVA by 2024 and the existing Van Eck Substation cannot be upgraded further to accommodate the anticipated demand as it has reached its physical design capacity.
“Current electricity demand forecasts (as per our Electricity Master Plan), indicate that the existing notified maximum demand at NamPower’s single-supply point to Windhoek namely, the 220/66kV (kilovolts) Van Eck transmission substation, is expected to be surpassed before 2027, due to the increased demand in electricity from the City of Windhoek,” she said.
“This day marks a significant milestone in the implementation of Council Resolution, for the construction of a Second Bulk Supply Point, which is urgently required to mitigate against anticipated load shedding by 2024, if the said supply point is not constructed.”
According to NamPower the construction of the Khomas Substation will take between 42 to 48 months before completion.
Thus, Keister said it was against this background that the signing ceremony is taking place so that construction of the substation commences and is completed on time.
“As Chairperson of the Management Committee, I am proud when Council resolutions are implemented with tangible outcomes. Today marks a very important council resolution and I can only express my appreciation to all the stakeholders for recognising the impact that such a project has on our city and future of electricity supply,” she said.
She adds that this project will ensure that electricity services are provided to new developments, informal settlements as well as other areas in the extended boundaries.
Apart from serving new customers, she noted that existing customers would also be spared the threat of possible load shedding.
“It is therefore of paramount importance that the loan agreement with DBN is signed so that construction begins,” she asserted.
