On Tuesday, 30 April 2015 Erongo RED and NamPower held a joined press briefing to inform the media and the public at large on the progress made on the Walvis Bay bulk upgrade project that commenced in 2013.

Speaking at this joint press conference, the Erongo RED’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Robert Kahimise highlighted that the Walvis Bay Bulk Upgrade project is so far the biggest project with significant capital injection that Erongo RED has undertaken and he further assured the stakeholders that the work is progressing very well.

“The construction of new Walvis Bay Intake Substation building that started in 2013 is completed and visible if one drives in the direction of the old Abattoir. The remainder of the project is at a very advanced stage and the primary equipment is currently being manufactured by ABB in Czech Republic. The design is based on very reliable equipment with a good footprint in SADC, which is critical for support and maintenance. This substation is the “gateway” for all energy to the town of Walvis Bay,” said Kahimise.

Kahimise explained that during the different upgrade phases, a number of power interruptions will be encountered. Hence the customers will be notified well in advance of any planned outages through the various media platforms.

According to Chief Technical Manager at NamPower, Mr. O’Brian Hekandjo, the construction of the 132kV lines is progress well and the lines are expected to be completed by the 1st July 2015. He further explained that NamPower will also invest in the strengthening of the 220kV transmission backbone and the upgrade of the Kuisebmund Substation from 66kV to 132kV. The existing 120MVA Transformers at Kuisebmund Substations will also be replaced with 2 X 160MVA Transformers.

The total costs for the entire project is estimated to be N$570 million, of which N$200 million is from Erongo RED collectively with its shareholders and the remaining N$370 million will be carried by NamPower.