Hydro Tasmania offshoot Entura has been awarded a €148,000 grant to further explore the potential for installing mini-hydro power generation systems in medium-sized cities, after the Australian-based company successfully identified opportunities to add hydro capacity to existing water supply infrastructure in the South African city of Durban.
The grant, from international NGO the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP), will go towards development of Entura’s Durban project, which was co-funded by eThekwini Water and Sanitation, a service unit of Durban City Council.
“The potential for mini-hydro to transform the energy mix in many cities is considerable,” said Eva Oberender, Director of Programme at REEEP. “This project is setting the stage for not only Durban, but the wider region as well.”
As part of the project, Entura has helped to build local knowledge and skills – including though a full-day training workshop – to support the identification and development of similar opportunities elsewhere in the region.
“Durban City Council has a vision of becoming a green city. The focus of Entura’s work was to assess the economic viability of installing mini-hydro schemes on existing infrastructure, such as pipelines and reservoirs, in support of that vision,” said Entura’s Durban project manager, Rik Van Der Kley.
“We found there is scope for utilities to add value to their existing operations, with mini-hydro projects of less than 1 megawatt providing viable opportunities. However, greater returns and investment opportunities exist for larger municipalities where projects in the 1-2 megawatt range could be developed.
“Infrastructure owners who invest in mini-hydro as an add-on to their core business can offset their own electricity costs by using the energy generated to run part of their operations, or could earn extra revenue by putting the energy into the local grid.”
Once implemented, the mini-hydro projects will also contribute to meeting renewable energy targets in South Africa.
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