Botswana has an abundance of diamonds – and it’s got loads of sunshine as well. So why not combine the two? That’s what the government is thinking.

It has initiated a bidding process to construct, operate, maintain and eventually decommission a scalable solar-power plant to meet electricity demands for its Jwaneng diamond mine (the eighth largest in the world, and operated by joint state and De Beers-owned venture, Debswana), as well as the nation’s north-west region – where copper assets are being developed.

According to a MineWeb report, the tender notice doesn’t specify the amount of generation to be procured. However, the country’s Department of Minerals and Energy previously mentioned 100 MW solar power tenders that would be split equally between Jwaneng and the north-west mines.

14 July 2015
Image: Andreas Elselen/HSMimages