LAYOUT-PLAN_PILOT-SOLAR-POWER-PLANT_KABULASOKE.pdf

SOLAR POWER PARKS (UP TO 150MW) AND WIND POWER PLANTS (UP TO 100MW)

TENTATIVE LAYOUT PLAN PILOT SOLAR POWER PARK KABULASOKE (UGANDA)

Prepared by: David Alobo, Ph.D Bryan Xsabo Strategy Consultants (Overall Project Coordinator) February 2013

Prepared for the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) as part of documentation for the permit process in accordance with the Electricity Act of the Republic of Uganda.

Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

PREAMBLE

In just 15 years from now, the global energy mix will enter an irreversible phase of dramatic, indeed revolutionary, change that will lead to the dominance of photovoltaic power for centuries to come. With this project, Uganda is demonstrating the kind of foresight and strategic thinking that many countries, including rich ones like Germany, have adopted for the sake of the environment, equity and future generations.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

CONTENTS I.

Introduction

Page 4

II.

Location

Page 6

III.

Layout Plan

Page 8

IV.

Pre-Environmental-Impact-Assessment

Page 22

V.

Time Schedule

Page 24

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

I.

INTRODUCTION This is part of the 450 million Euros project

SOLAR POWER PARKS (UP TO 150MW) AND WIND POWER PARKS (UP TO 100MW) UGANDA, a joint-venture arrangement where Mola Solar Systems (Uganda) Limited is the EXECUTING AGENCY and Bryan Xsabo Strategy Consultants (Uganda) Limited the OVERALL PROJECT COORDINATOR. The goal is to continuously provide up to 150MW of reliable clean power from solar energy and up to 100MW of equally reliable clean power from wind energy to the national grid at the end of the implementation phase. The total output from the project in terms of kilowatt hours will be as follows upon completion of all the power plants: 

Solar Power Parks (150MWp):

225 GWh per annum;



Wind Power Plants (100MW):

300 GWh per annum.

The text of the corresponding Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL), the Government-owned bulk buyer for the national grid, has already been agreed upon. The PPA is valid for an initial period of 20 years and will be extended automatically for a further 20 years. The official feed-in tariff fixed by the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) for power ensuing from wind energy is 0.13 US-Dollars (0.0985 Euros) per kilowatt hour (kWh). This will also apply to the wind power parks of this project. There being no official feed-in tariff for electricity ensuing from solar energy, the project is in the final stage of negotiations with ERA for a special feed-in tariff for power ensuing from its solar power parks. These solar power parks will provide approximately 225GWh of power per annum to the national grid from the following sites: 

Kabulasoke (Gomba District):

20MW;



Lira (Lira District):

10MW;



Nkenda (Kasese District):

20MW;

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke



Nkonge (Mubende District):

50MW;



Opuyo (Soroti District):

50MW.

Pilot Power Parks

The project will begin with a 60 million Euros pilot solar power park in Kabulasoke (Gomba District) with a capacity of 20MWp (30 GWh per year) and a 40 million Euros pilot wind power plant, also with a capacity of 20MW (but about 60 GWh per annum).

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

II.

LOCATION The pilot solar power park will be located in Kabulasoke (Gomba District) in Central Uganda …

… 2km from Kabulasoke on the Kanoni-Kabulasoke road on the hills off the UETCL substation:

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

The relevant land, which will be purchased by the project from the respective owners at a price negotiated through the good offices of the District Chairman, is typical farmland, albeit not fully in use for agriculture, with simple homes scattered here and there, as this satellite picture and other photos in the general project presentation show:

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

III.

LAYOUT PLAN

The operation of a solar power park is basic in nature. Constructing solar power plants is equally a relatively simple matter that should not be exaggerated through the issuance of complex layout and design plans – especially in this case where a customized turnkey photovoltaic system will be put together for the project in advance by the manufacturers. This will be a 20MW solar photovoltaic energy generating facility using thin film PV modules to produce clean, renewable energy for national grid customers. The pilot project’s entire energy output will, therefore, be purchased by UETCL on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Uganda for further sale to end-users across the country. Based on the level of radiation, which determines the energy output level, it has been established that the project will require 7.5 acres of land for each MW. This will translate into the following land requirement amounting to 150 acres in total: 

775m x 775m if a squared design layout is determined most optimal; or



500m x 1,200m if a rectangular design proves more conducive.

A circular non-classical layout design with a diameter of 875m would also do. In all, the pilot solar power park in Kabulasoke will have: 

20,000 modules arranged in 4 major blocks (4 x 5MW), divided into 34 miniblocks with each mini-block consisting of 4,300 modules à 125 watts and capacity of 600kW;



100 converters;



4 transformer stations (Trafos) with generators for 5MW each;



1 grid connection cabinet; and



A high wire fence/1 strand barbed wire security fence.

The electricity will be fed into the national grid via an underground cable from the grid connection cabinet that would connect into the existing UETCL sub-station in Kabulasoke.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

Each mini block will cover an area measuring 112.8m by 76.0m, so that the entire facility will in the final analysis most probably cover an area measuring 830m by 410m as follows …

830m

410m

… or any of the above mentioned design alternatives if feasibility studies deem such a change in layout design to be more optimal… … and deriving from the following simplified standard technical drawing – with all the modules grouped into 4 major blocks and 4 transformers (one for each block) whose total output of 20MWp is then consolidated before being fed into the UETCL sub-station, as the illustration below shows:

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

Spacing Tilt and Line-Up of the Solar Modules

Spacing, line up and tilt of the modules will be as follows:

As illustrated below, the modules will be mounted on a single-base system...

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

… with galvanic separation within the framework of a pile-driven foundation – at depths of between 1.30m and 2.50m – that enables extremely quick, simple and yet efficient assembly. All the modules will be mounted in tables…

… that will connect, via angled brackets, to steel columns which will be driven into the ground. These assemblies will be organized into arrays. The final decision on the placement of arrays within the facility site will be based on: 

site specific constraints, including topography and biological considerations, which will be identified during the feasibility studies phase;



a geotechnical investigation for the finalization of the structural design – including final assessment of the required depth of piles that will be driven into the ground to support the PV modules;

and the need to ensure that the modules fit beautifully into the scenery in a way comparable to the following:

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

Leisure Park

The whole site will be seeded with a proprietary grass mix to develop it into an area of beautiful grassland with a wide range of flowering species to form a beautiful leisure park to the benefit of the local population, visitors and local wildlife. Details of these proposals, including the planting mixes, will be worked out as soon as the project has received the power generation permit from ERA.

Wiring

The solar power plant will contain the following wiring components: 

Battery/charger to provide back-up auxiliary power to the control system;



Control Building to house the electronic equipment that ensures adequate power quality;



Revenue meter to monitor the amount of electricity produced by the solar power park;



Feeder cabling for alternating current (AC) power from the inverter stations;

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke



Motor operated switch to disconnect the solar power plant from the distribution grid whenever necessary.

Electrical cables will connect the panels together into strings. The strings of panels will be connected to combiner boxes located at the end of a row of racks by cables mounted to the underside of the racks. Buried gatherings or feeder lines will connect the PV panel arrays/inverters to the four on‐site transformers. Inverters convert direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC). Transformers step-up the electrical current to the distribution voltage corresponding to the needs of the UETCL sub-station, which will receive power from the facility in a single combined and metered output. The buried lines will be contained within the project location and will be buried to a minimum depth of 1m. The inverters and transformers will be based on concrete foundations and on specially constructed areas that are in turn elevated to ensure proper drainage away from them during the rainy season. The cables will be installed by using a cable trenching machine or an excavator to create a trench. The cable will then be dropped into the trench from a spool pulled by a truck. While the material removed from the trench will be used as backfill in the trench, topsoil and subsoil that is excavated will be stored and replaced separately on agricultural lands. Equipment used in cable installation may include a backhoe or track mounted excavator, and trenching/boring equipment.

Access Roads

A paved road that is designed for easy access by both lorries and normal sized vehicles will be built off the Kanoni-Kabulasoke road up to the facility. A smaller paved road will be constructed around the entire solar power park. In-between the module groups, small roadways with a permeable gravel base, not paved, will be constructed to allow easy access for regular inspection, maintenance purposes and, if need be, repair work:

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

While the surrounding beautiful park will be open to the public for recreation, sports, picnics etc., the modules themselves may be fenced to ensure safety to the public and

to prevent potential trespassing and vandalism:

The fence will be a metal chain link fence with strands of barbed wire and approximately 2.5m high. The fences notwithstanding, there will be at least two 24-hour security guards located on the site during construction and operation. Surveillance methods such as security cameras, motion detectors or heat sensors will be installed at locations along the project boundary. Gates will be installed at the roads entering or exiting the solar power park. Shielded area-specific lighting for security purposes will be limited to the major parts of the facility. The level and intensity of lighting will be the minimum needed for security

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

and safety reasons. These lights will be turned on either by a local switch, as needed, or by motion sensors that will be triggered by movement at a human’s height. Sensors on the security fencing will alert security personnel of possible intruders. Exterior lights will be shielded and focused downward and toward the interior of the solar power park to minimize lighting impacts to the night sky and to neighbouring areas.

Solar Power Park House

A small POWER PARK MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL HOUSE will be built at the main entrance of the pilot solar power park – maximum 3km from the UETCL sub-station. This building will serve as offices for the Site Manager and other staff in addition to housing the PARK CONTROL CENTRE and consolidation point for power from all the individual modules of the facility. There will also be a sort of “Boys’ Quarters” for security personnel.

High-Tech Surveillance On-Site and Off-Site

The entire solar power park will be equipped with world-class monitoring facilities both on-site and remotely using intelligent digital systems. The layout plan and design take the above into account. 24-hour on-site monitoring will be carried out by trained security personnel with: 

state-of-the-art real-time digital monitoring equipment;



two to three modern bicycles;



one motor cycle and



a cross-country vehicle

operating under the on-site supervision of a SITE MANAGER. This arrangement will be duplicated for each of the other solar power parks across the country.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

Remote monitoring will enable easy management and 24 hour real-time surveillance of all the solar power parks by other authorized company personnel from the company headquarters and from anywhere else via internet:

The relevant online information will include: 

Energy yield for the day per module (group) and for each solar power park;



Energy yield for the day for all the solar power parks together (cumulative);



Total energy yield from Day 1 of the financial year up to the day in question for each module (group) (cumulative);



Total energy yield from Day 1 of the financial year up to the current day for each solar power park (cumulative);



Performance ratio per day for each module (group);



Performance ratio per day for each solar power park;



Performance ratio for all the solar power parks together (consolidated).

Digital video surveillance cameras will also be strategically installed to boost the security of each individual solar module and the entire facility indeed. Access to the corresponding real-time images will be possible for authorized personnel both on-site in the site management office as well as off-site anywhere via intelligent state-of-the-art digital systems.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

Temporary Construction Facilities

The construction phase will involve the use of a special mobile crane for positioning the inverter, transformer and grid connection cabinets. Otherwise, it will, from a technical perspective, be a very simple straightforward step-by-step assembling assignment.

Staging Areas: As a standard requirement, 3 to 5 temporary construction staging areas will be established in and around the pilot solar power park during the construction phase for use as temporary construction offices and parking. Their exact size will be determined during the feasibility studies period. They will be used throughout the approximately 3 to 4 month pilot plant project construction period and then decommissioned. The staging areas will include material laydown and storage areas and an equipment assembly area. A few additional acres will be set aside for construction trailers, construction worker parking and portable toilet facilities that will serve the project’s sanitation needs during construction. Temporary construction fencing will surround this area.

Access to Construction Site:

Graded all-weather roads will be required in selected locations on the proposed solar power park during construction to bring equipment and materials from the staging areas to the construction work areas. These roads will not be decommissioned after construction, but will be designed and constructed as already explained above to enable them to be used for long-term plant operation and maintenance.

Water for Construction Purposes:

The Project will use no water for electrical power generation.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

After completion of the construction phase, the only water use will be for domestic purposes (drinking, washing, toilets) of the power park personnel. If a solar water pump cannot be built fast enough, water for the construction phase of the pilot solar plant will be drawn by trucks from nearby wells. During the approximately 3-month construction period, water will mainly be needed for such uses as soil compaction, dust control and sanitary needs. The majority of the construction water use will occur during the site preparation period. The total estimate for the peak daily water demand (in gallons per day) will be made by the project’s Chief Engineer during the feasibility studies phase. A temporary water storage facility will be used to store water during construction in order to meet expected daily demand. Depending on how fast the solar water pump scenario can function, the water storage facility may initially have to be connected to the wells with existing or temporary piping. Water will be transferred directly to trucks from the storage facility as needed for construction.

Chemicals at Project Site During Construction

Product Diesel Fuel Gasoline/ Petrol Motor Oil Hydraulic Fluids and Lube Oils Soil Stabilizers Bio-degradable Mineral Oil

Use Vehicles Vehicles Vehicles Vehicles and Equipment Roads and PV-Module Areas Transformers

Chemicals at Project Site During Operation

Product Diesel Fuel Gasoline/ Petrol Motor Oil Bio-degradable Mineral Oil

Use Vehicles Vehicles Vehicles Transformers

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

Construction Phases

As per implementation timetable, the construction of the pilot solar plant will be completed in three basic phases: pre-construction activities; site preparation and underconstruction; and construction and installation of the solar PV modules and electrical components. 





Pre-Construction Activities: ─

Clearance Surveys;

─

Fencing.

Site Preparation and Under-Construction: ─

Vegetation Treatment, Clearing and Grading;

─

Compaction;

─

Under-Construction.

Construction and Installation of Modules and Electrical Components: ─

Installation of the PV solar modules;

─

Underground AC and DC cabling;

─

Installation of electrical equipment;

─

Construction of access roads;

─

Connection to the national grid;

─

Testing for synchronization; and

─

Testing for commissioning.

The entire construction process in a nutshell: Basically, the modules, which are built with standard touch-safe connectors, will be electrically connected once they are all installed in an array. Workers will walk behind each

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

row and plug the wires from each module into a wiring harness that collects all power from each table. An electrician will then connect all wiring harnesses to a combiner box, which will in turn link the connections from the PV modules. All combiner boxes will be wired via underground DC cables to a common enclosure where an electrician will connect all the wires to the inverters and other electrical equipment therein. Each inverter will thus convert the DC power to the AC power that will be fed into step-up transformers connected via underground AC cables to the facility’s central switchgear. The switchgear combines the power output from the various arrays. Power is then transferred accordingly to the UETCL sub-station.

Construction Hours

Typical construction work schedules are expected to be from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, which complies with the normal working hours in Uganda. In the event that construction work has to take place outside these typical hours due to emergency situations, the overall project coordinator will ensure that activities comply with both national and local regulations for such eventualities.

Operation and Facility Maintenance Needs

The entire project is designed to have essentially no moving parts, no thermal cycle, and, as already mentioned, no water use for electricity generation. This simple project design will require only limited maintenance throughout the lifetime of the solar modules.

Fire Protection

There is only limited potential for wildfire on the pilot project site. The pilot solar power plant is neither located adjacent to nor in a truly urbanized area or wild land. Vegetation is

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

normal and the facility footprint itself would be cleared, so that fire risk from vegetation will be minimized. The Project will coordinate with Gomba District Local Government and the responsible SubCounty Chief for Kabulasoke to ensure that appropriate measures are taken to control any unforeseeable risk of fire. In any case, project facilities have been designed, and will be constructed and operated, in accordance with applicable international fire protection and other environmental, health and safety requirements. This is because the project management team subscribes to the fact that effective maintenance and monitoring programmes are vital to productivity as well as to fire protection, environmental protection and worker protection. Needless to mention, the project will use the feasibility studies phase to develop an adequate site-specific fire prevention plan for both the construction and operational phase.

De-Commissioning

Should the project site be removed from power generation service at the end of the PPA period agreed for 20 years with an automatic extension for a further 20 years, project facilities will be reused, recycled, removed or abandoned as per desired subsequent use and in compliance with applicable regulations. Procedures for reuse, recycling, removal or abandonment will be fully outlined in the final Decommissioning Plan. Where feasible, power plant components will be reused or recycled. If the site is not planned for industrial, commercial or residential development after project de-commissioning, the facilities will be removed and the site restored to a condition that allows it to be utilized for natural habitat and as rural open space.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

IV.

PRE-ENVIRONMENTAL-IMPACT-ASSESSMENT Whereas a comprehensive site-specific Environmental Impact Assessment will be made once the project has received the relevant permit from the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) as per Electricity Act (1999), it can, from the outset, already be stated that the proposed solar power park will not pose any environmental problems to human beings, wildlife and the environment. Indeed, the Tentative Layout Plan has been designed to fulfil internationally accepted regulatory requirements.

Beautiful-fit into the Landscape

As already mentioned, the modules will be constructed to fit beautifully into the existing environment and the beauty of the surrounding landscape enhanced by a public park surrounding the entire power plant and designed to produce beautiful flowers throughout the year. The grassland treatment elaborated earlier in this document will assist accordingly.

Land Use, Water

This pilot solar power park will by its very nature be a sustainable and energy efficient development. Surface water run-off will be minimal and will not pose a flood risk. No solar power park infrastructure (e.g., panel racks, electrical connection lines, operation and maintenance building, access roads, etc.) are expected to be constructed near (i.e., within 120m) or across watercourses. Through the implementation of a re‐ vegetation plan involving native grass seeding of disturbed soils, even the operations phase of the project will not result in any negative aquatic effects in the project location or within the surrounding area.

Environment, Wildlife and Vegetation

The proposed pilot solar power plant will be a low‐profile and non‐obtrusive facility with absolutely no negative environmental impact on the site itself as well as on adjacent land.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

Once constructed, the solar power plant will have no moving parts and no harmful emissions or any other form of waste product. The inverters will be placed on concrete pad foundations and the arrays spaced in order to avoid shading on the modules and a resulting decrease in electrical output. Due to the spacing between rows, small native vegetation will continue to grow beneath and between the rows. Wildlife typically at home in and around the current vegetation will also not be affected. Indeed, the project will not require the handling, storage or processing of waste/sewage/biomass, nor will it discharge contaminants to the air.

Noise

A solar power plant is a fixed system without any continuously moving switches, equipment or fluids during the power generation process. The only equipment with a theoretical potential to emit noise are the transformers and inverter stations. However, these are all designed to adhere to sound level limits that ensure that no significant noise can be heard outside the parameter of the facility.

Traffic

Except for a SITE MANAGER, who will have an office vehicle, and two security personnel equipped with two motorcycles or mopeds for on-site monitoring within the solar power park, the facility will have no full-time employees when operational. The facility will, therefore, not add significantly to the local daily traffic load. The lifespan of the solar modules being 30 years, only a limited number of deliveries of replacement material and equipment – for supporting functions – will be required for over three decades. Once a month, one or two vehicles will access the facility with engineers and other staff for scheduled preventive maintenance activities, including panel cleaning and occasional grass cutting to avoid the panels being shaded.

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Layout Plan: Pilot Solar Power Park Kabulasoke

V.

TIME SCHEDULE Once all the equipment have arrived in the country, the project will need a total period of three months to get the pilot solar power park ready for operation. This stresses the realistic nature of the underlying ambitious implementation timetable drawn by the project management team. The project management team therefore assures all stakeholders that this pilot solar power park can be commissioned during the last week of August 2013 if ERA issues the relevant permit in April 2013. Permit issuance in May 2013 would postpone planned commissioning to the end of September 2013. The roll-out plan covering the remaining 130MW of clean solar power from the other proposed solar power park sites can be completed within schedule, with the last one operational latest by the end of 2014, no matter whether the permit is issued in April 2013, as requested, or later in May 2013.

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