Cluff Geothermal can move ahead on PPA for geothermal project in Ethiopia
Work on project site in Fantale, Ethiopia (source: Cluff Geothermal)
Alexander Richter
26 Jun 2017
British developer Cluff Geothermal has announced a go ahead for discussions on a PPA project for its Fantale geothermal power project in Ethiopia, an important and significant milestone for the project and the company.
In a release today, British Cluff Geothermal announces having got the go ahead for a Power Purchase Agreement kick-off meeting with Ethiopian Electric Power for its Fantale Geothermal License in Ethiopia.
Following a positive meeting between Cluff Geothermal and the state power company, Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP), in Addis Ababa in June 2017, arranged by the British Embassy, Cluff has been given the go ahead to set up a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) kick off meeting.
The kick off meeting with EEP will begin the PPA negotiations for the Fantale geothermal license, awarded to Cluff in July 2015. Once those negotiations are completed Cluff will be ready to begin exploration drilling at Fantale.
Following the company’s very successful surface campaign, and extensive consultation as to a Conceptual Development Plan, Cluff plans to begin the Fantale site development with a 50 MW development phase followed by a 100 MW development phase. The total estimated investment for these first two phases could be in the region of USD 750 million.
George Percy, Cluff’s CEO, said: “We are looking forward to engaging with EEP on the PPA for Fantale. Building on our extensive and high-quality surface studies we are keen to push forward with the development of such a high quality geothermal site and playing our part in Ethiopia’s growth by generating significant amounts of low carbon and sustainable electricity”.
Her Excellency the British Ambassador to Ethiopia, Susanna Moorehead, said: “I’m delighted to hear that more detailed discussions are going to start between Cluff Geothermal and Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP). The UK is a world leader in geothermal energy and has committed to meeting 15% of its energy demand from renewable sources by 2020. The recent discussion between Cluff Geothermal and EEP is an example of UK companies showing greater interest in engaging in the development of clean and sustainable energy in Ethiopia.”
Background information
Cluff Geothermal holds the geothermal exploration license for the high quality geothermal resource at Fantale, located near the towns of Awash and Metehara, 200km east of Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.
Alongside other surface exploration techniques, the company completed a successful magnetotelluric survey at Fantale in 2016. Much of the cost of this survey was provided by the Geothermal Risk Mitigation Facility (GRMF), to which the UK Government is the largest single contributor.
The Ethiopian Government plans to develop renewable energy capacity of 17,000MWe by 2020 as part of its second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II).
Ethiopia has been one of the world’s fastest growing economies over the past 10 years, with growth averaging 10%.
Cluff Geothermal Limited is a UK registered company and is a 100% owned subsidiary of Hotspur Geothermal Limited, which is also registered in the UK. As well as Ethiopia, the Hotspur Group has direct geothermal exploration experience in Kenya, the UK and Indonesia.
