OREANDA-NEWS. On August 22 2008 the CHICAPA-1 hydropower station built by ALROSA in Angola was inaugurated in Saurimo, the provincial capital of Lunda Sul, reported the press-centre of ALROSA.

The ceremony was attended by President of Angola Jose Eduardo dos Santos, Angolan government officers and Lunda Sul officials, ALROSA senior management.

This power-generating facility has been built to supply energy to the Catoca diamond mine and Saurimo, the provincial capital of Lunda Sul.

Its commissioning will enable the Catoca mine, a joint venture with ALROSA, to operate more efficiently, and also will open new prospects for social and economic development of the province of Lunda Sul.

Chicapa-1 is the first privately-controlled hydroelectric station in Angola.

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The construction of a hydropower station on the Chicapa River began in 2004 in line with the agreements reached between the Angolan Ministry of Energy and Water and ALROSA. ALROSA was chosen as investor of the project.

ALROSA and Angola’s Empresa Nacional de Electricidade (ENE) jointly set up Hydrochicapa Co. (with 55% owned by ALROSA) that acted as the project owner. The EPC contractor was ALROSA-Vneshstroy Ltd., a construction company also set up by ALROSA. The general designer of the project was the Yakutniproalmaz Institute of ALROSA, while Lenhydroproekt acted as the subdesigner.

The energy generating capacity of CHICAPA-1 is 16 MW (4 power generating units of 4MW each). The average annual energy generating capability is 116-120 m kwh.

At present agreements on construction of the CHICAPA-2 station by 2010 have been reached.