Economic and financial analysis of revamping the Kapisya geothermal project, Zambia

Abstract

The objective of this study is to carry out an economic and financial assessment for the viability of the Kapisya geothermal power project, with the plant having been non-operational since 1988 when it was installed by Dal.spa of Italy. The economic and financial assessment will also attempt to find the most pragmatic solutions that are also economically viable given the current geothermal parameters at Kapisya geothermal field, which could be implemented once funding is available. In the past, there have been a few studies that have looked at developing the Kapisya geothermal field with the view to carry out new drilling and further field development including a new power plant of up to 2 MW. The Zambian government´s increasing support for renewable energy aims at diversifying its electricity generation portfolio predominantly from hydroelectricity to other renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, biomass and geothermal. Compared to other renewable energy sources geothermal energy is not only clean energy but is also outstanding as reliable baseload power and thus an alternative to large hydro power for heavy and light industry. Therefore, all the major geothermal systems in Zambia were included in this study with emphasis on sites with the most potential for exploitation.

The approach of the study was from the perspective of installing a small binary Organic Rankine Cycle plant given the current geothermal parameters at Kapisya geothermal field. This was done with the view to produce electricity starting with at least 110 kW and further increasing the power output in a stepwise expansion mode. The most favourable and ideal solutions for the latest small ORC binary plants were analysed and the economic and financial analysis was done to ascertain the viability of electricity generation at the Kapisya geothermal field. This was done considering rural electrification and small industries far from the electricity grid. Apart from electricity generation there was also the economic perspective of geothermal utilisation for fish drying for the local fish industry, as the Kapisya geothermal field is situated on the shores of Lake Tanganyika. This has potential to boost the local fishing industry.