French energy holding company InnoVent, has recently concluded plans to set up a 150 to 500 megawatt (MW) wind farm in Sperrgebiet National Park, a diamond mining area in South-western Namibia, North of Lüderitz.
Speaking about this development, Environmental Commissioner Theofilus Nghitila, commended the move, saying it is a signal to the world that Namibia has the potential for renewable energy.
“Namibia has the best wind regime in the world, which is unexploited for energy generation. We expect the signing ceremony to open a new era for Namibia for the private sector to tap into this potential to the fullest. This energy resource needs to be exploited like diamonds,” he stressed adding that Namibia has set itself an ambitious target to have 90% of energy needs met by renewable energy by the year 2030. The target set by the year 2030 is subject to the availability of financial resources by developed countries, the Global Environment Fund (GEF) and the private sector.
InnoSun, a subsidiary of InnoVent, was created in 2010 to develop, construct, finance and operate solar photovoltaic plants which led to the inauguration of Namibia’s first-ever multi-million dollar solar plant near Omaruru in the Erongo region in May this year.
In Africa, InnoVent has already developed wind farms producing thousands of megawatts in countries such as Morocco and Kenya. Namibia is said to receive more sunlight than anywhere else on earth.
