- Botswana partners with Oman to develop a major 500-MW solar project.
- Agreements include fuel storage, petroleum trade, and mineral exploration collaboration.
- The country targets universal electricity access and a 50% renewables share by 2030.
Botswana aims to expedite renewable energy growth to ensure electricity availability, enhance electrification, and reduce its carbon emissions. The government declared that it had entered into multiple strategic agreements with investment firms from the Sultanate of Oman, which include a partnership on a 500-MW solar photovoltaic initiative.
Officials formalized the agreements in Gaborone during a trip by an Omani delegation headed by Abdulsalam bin Mohammed Al Murshidi, president of the Oman Investment Authority. The mission took place after Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi visited Oman.
The joint communique indicated that the energy partnership includes three elements: the creation of fuel-storage infrastructure, the distribution and regional trade of petroleum products, and the execution of the 500-MW solar project, which is highlighted as a key aspect of the new collaboration. The parties additionally signed a partnership agreement with the Botswana Geoscience Institute to aid national exploration and mineral development efforts.
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Botswana defined its national goals in the National Energy Compact, released within the Mission 300 framework. The government seeks to provide universal electricity access by 2030, increasing the access rate from 76.6% to 100% by expanding the grid in peri-urban and rural regions and implementing off-grid solutions for remote communities. Botswana aims to increase the proportion of renewable energy in its electricity mix from 8% today to 50% by 2030 through enhanced investments in solar and wind.