The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has opened bidding for partners ready to help finance the long-delayed $7-billion Inga 3 hydroelectric plant, its energy minister said. The government has created a new company to manage the project’s construction, which is expected to last eight years and has attracted interest from mining giant BHP-Billiton which has proposed financing of up to $35 million.
The combined potential of Congo‘s Inga dams has been estimated as high as 100,000 MW, but current output is around 700 MW and projects to revamp the dams have failed to find investment. Congo opened the bidding process for companies interested in investing in the 4,320 MW Inga 3 dam after hosting talks on the project in Kinshasa this week, UN-backed Radio Okapi reported.
"Today, BHP-Billiton is interested in this production, because it wants to build an aluminum smelter in Bas-Congo (province). This is the first client we have," Energy Minister Laurent Muzangisa Mutalamu said.
Congo‘s government is currently focusing on repairs and upgrades for the faltering Inga 1 and 2 hydro projects, hoping to increase their capacity to 1,700 MW by 2012. Congo plans one day to bring on line the 40,000 MW Grand Inga project. However, investors have so far been wary of the risk involved and have baulked at its $80-billion price tag.
