A 63m-tall wind turbine has completed an epic 19-day journey from the Netherlands to Dongola in Sudan’s Northern State, via Port Sudan. This marks the inaugural milestone towards the country’s first commercial-scale wind energy plant.
Funded by the government of Sudan and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the construction is estimated to take two to three weeks.
The turbine will demonstrate the viability of utility-scale wind energy in Africa’s third largest nation, and is projected to 14,000 persons to the national grid
The project aims to capitalise on the nation’s significant wind-energy potential to improve access to energy, diversify Sudan’s power sources, and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
Yasir Abdalla Saied, Director General, Directorate of Renewable Energy, Ministry of Energy and Petroleum said “The arrival of our first wind turbine marks the first step in Sudan’s wind power journey and continues the significant advances in renewable energy we have made over the past decade”
The turbine was made in the Netherlands from where it was shipped to Port Sudan. The last leg of its journey to the wind farm site in Dongola, crossed 4,600 km and took seven vehicles to transport.
The UNDP in 2020 announced the launch of a joint Sudanese Standards and Metrology Organization (SSMO)/UNDP ‘Solar Lab’ in Khartoum, to provide evaluation and certification services for solar energy technology.
The lab’s main task is to ensure the quality and longevity of imported solar systems, and support Sudan’s solar revolution, the UNDP said solar energy offers significant opportunities for a high sunshine hours nation like Sudan.
