NEWS

Mpatamanga Hydro Power Limited (MHPL) has launched an initial selection phase for the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Testing and Commissioning Contract for the 365.6 MW Mpatamanga storage hydropower project on the river Shire in southern Malawi. MHPL invites prequalification bids from eligible applicants by 13 November 2026 to participate in the initial selection process for the Pre-Construction Services (PCS) in the frame of the EPC contract award for the Mpatamanga project.

Mpatamanga will comprise two cascading generating stations – an upper main peaking plant with an installed capacity of 306 MW and a lower 59.6 MW regulating hydropower station, around 6 km downstream, complete with separate substations and two transmission lines. The cascade will be located between the existing Tedzani and Kapichira stations on the Shire River, southern Malawi.

The project, which will more than double Malawi’s current installed capacity, is expected to help reduce energy shortages and enhance energy security. The main plant with its reservoir storage is designed to provide peaking power and overall grid stability with its ability to ramp production up or down to meet demand. The Mpatamanga Hydro Power Project (MHPP) is to be financed, built, and operated on a Public-Private Partnership basis by a consortium of France’s EDF Power Solutions and SN Malawi comprising TotalEnergies, British International Investment (BII) and Norfund with the Government of Malawi and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank Group’s private sector arm, under a joint development agreement signed in 2022. EDF and SN Malawi, which jointly own a 55 per cent stake in MHPL, the special purpose vehicle set up to build and operate the project, are the lead developers.

Finance will be provided by the equity partners, using funds from the World Bank, as well as debt from commercial banks and development finance institutions, including the EIB, to be co-ordinated by the IFC. The project is currently expected to close financing in October 2027 and to be commissioned in 2032.

For more details, click here.