The Baynes Hydroelectric Power Station is a planned

hydroelectric power Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

plant in northwest

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

, at the border with

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

Location

The power station is located across the Kunene River, in the

Kunene Region Kunene is one of the fourteen regions of Namibia. Its capital is Opuwo, its governor is Marius Sheya. The region's name comes from the Kunene River which forms the northern border with Angola. Besides the capital Opuwo, the region contains the ...

of Namibia, approximately downstream of

Ruacana Hydroelectric Power Station The Ruacana Hydroelectric Power Station is a hydroelectric power plant near Ruacana in northwest Namibia, close to the Angolan border. Commissioned in 1978, it is by far the largest power station in Namibia. Its operator is NamPower, the Namibia ...

, at the international border with the

Republic of Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

. The location is at the foothills of the

Baynes Mountains The Baynes Mountains are a mountain range in Namibia. Description The Baynes Mountains form an escarpment plateau in Kunene Region in northwest Namibia, near the border with Angola (formed here by the Kunene River). The mountains range in altitud ...

, approximately , by road, northwest of

Windhoek Windhoek (, , ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek in 202 ...

, the capital and largest city of Namibia. The dam and power station would sit astride the border between Angola and Namibia.

Overview

Before 2005,

NamPower Namibia Power Corporation, commonly known as NamPower, is the national electric power utility company of Namibia. The company is responsible for generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in the country. Its activities are lice ...

, the electricity supply

parastatal A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the government ...

in Namibia, maintained a ''Firm Power Contract (FPC)'' with

Eskom Eskom Hld SOC Ltd or Eskom is a South African electricity public utility. It was established in 1923 as the Electricity Supply Commission (ESCOM) and was also known by its Afrikaans name Elektrisiteitsvoorsieningskommissie (EVKOM). Eskom repre ...

of South Africa. That year, the contract expired and could not be renewed because South Africa was having a power shortage of its own. Joint feasibility studies, environmental and resettlement assessments, selected the present location, because it was the least disruptive to the environment and to the lives of the indigenous communities. The governments of Angola and Namibia decided to build a 600 megawatt power station and share the energy equally.

Technical details

The dam consists of a rock fill embankment with a concrete face. The rock fill will be . The maximum dam wall height will be , creating a reservoir that measures , long and a maximum width of . The resultant lake would have a surface area of and hold of water. Power will be generated by five

Francis-type The Francis turbine is a type of water turbine. It is an inward-flow reaction turbine that combines radial and axial flow concepts. Francis turbines are the most common water turbine in use today, and can achieve over 95% efficiency. The proc ...

Vertical Axis turbines. Two turbines will each have capacity of 71 megawatts and three with 156.75 megawatts capacity each.

Construction

The construction budget has been calculated at US$1.2 billion. Construction is planned to start in 2021 and conclude in 2025. After completion, Angola and Namibia are expected to utilize 300 megawatts each. In April 2020, that timeline was pushed back; with construction starting in 2023 and commissioning in 2029.

References

External links