Zoetic Global signed a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for an additional 100 MW of power at the Akosombo Dam. The Akosombo Dam project, located on Lake Volta, will aid Ghana in meeting some of its growing power needs
Chairman and CEO of Zoetic Global, Jerome Ringo, commented in a company press release: “We look forward to working closely with ECG and other key parties to provide additional power needed to support Ghana’s growth. This project will bring substantial, clean and immediate power on-line without environmental impact or societal disruption.”
The project will involve an array of modular hydrokinetic turbines to be deployed in the post-dam wash of the Akosombo Dam. The In-Stream Auger Turbine (IAT) technology being used is designed for high efficiency power generation from flowing water and will leverage existing infrastructure at the dam site including grid connections, access roads, and on-site maintenance buildings.
The project at Akosombo has the potential to be a landmark deployment in the emerging field of hydrokinetics and a significant new entry into a renewable energy sector where solar and wind technologies have dominated the spotlight.
Zoetic is working with strategic partners including Natural Power Concepts, International Coil Ltd, and JWF Industries on turbine production and preparations for the project implementation. The manufacturing of the hydrokinetic devices and components is scheduled throughout 2016 via partnerships in Pennsylvania and India, with final assembly taking place in Ghana.
John Pitre, inventor of the IAT and founder of Natural Power Concepts, says that “The IAT was designed with developing countries in mind. With traditional hydroelectric plants taking several years to complete and requiring extensive site construction with heavy environmental impacts,” he says, “I believed that an alternative solution was needed that could be lower maintenance and more quickly deployed.”
In addition to agreements in Ghana, Zoetic is actively negotiating PPAs in other nations of sub-Saharan Africa as interest in renewables increases across the region.