Algeria set to launch a call for tenders for renewable energy IPPs
Algeria, Algiers: The government of Algeria is preparing to launch a call for tenders for independent power producers (IPPs).
Image source: ESI Africa
Algeria, Algiers: The government of Algeria is preparing to launch a call for tenders for independent power producers (IPPs).
The aim of this call for expressions of interest is to select companies to produce 1,000 MW of renewable energy.
In a decree published on 29 April 2021 in the official gazette, the Algerian government empowered Chems Eddine Chitour, the Minister of Energy Transition and Renewable Energies, to manage and supervise the entire operation.
The aim is to obtain a new installed capacity of 1,000 MW. This electricity will be produced from renewable sources, the most abundant of which in the North African country is solar.
The Algerian government is preparing to set up a bankable electricity purchase agreement for the IPPs that will be selected at the end of the process. These investors will, however, have to meet certain requirements, such as the use of equipment manufactured locally in Algeria. These are mainly solar panels, assembly structures and electrical cables.
Algeria already has several factories manufacturing equipment for the production of solar energy. In the Boukherana industrial zone, near Chelghoum El Aid (400 km from Algiers), the Algerian company Milltech has a factory capable of supplying 100 MW of solar panels per year.
In June 2020, the Algerian company SPS (Système Panneaux Sandwiches) and Qi-Energy, a company based in Dubai, UAE, launched a joint venture for the manufacture of mounting structures for the modules.
Local sourcing of construction materials for renewable energy plants will reduce electricity purchase prices in Algeria. In the Algerian Programme for the Development of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency launched in 2012, the authorities were counting on an installed capacity of 20,000 MW of renewable energy, including 13,575 MW of capacity for solar and 5,000 MW for wind by 2030.
Source: ESI Africa