(Seychelles News Agency) - Seychelles’ main power station, located at Roche Caiman on Mahe Island, is to be expanded by 18MW, the Public Utilities Corporation (PUC) announced recently. 

With the installation of two new 8MW generator sets, this will bring the total capacity to 92MW at that particular power station, with the Victoria Power station having a capacity of 28MW. 

According to a press release from the PUC, this expansion project, valued at €21.8 million, was initiated following a contract agreement signed in October this year, between PUC and the International Montage Maintenance (IMM), an independent engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor specialising in thermal power generation plants, based in Belgium. 

This project is being facilitated through a loan financed by Nouvobanq and is expected to be completed by July 2025. 

The agreement with IMM was finalised following an international tender process aimed at acquiring the necessary generator sets for the expansion. 

The project's scope includes a number of components, such as the delivery and installation of the two additional 8MW generator sets and their auxiliary systems, as well as civil works to expand the Roche Caiman power plant's infrastructure. 

Increasing Mahe's generator capacity is one of the main goals of this expansion project, which aims to meet the growing demand for power. 

PUC hopes to lessen its dependency on older generator sets located at the New Port Power Station by introducing these two new generator sets. 

According to the PUC, in the long run, this action will make it easier to decommission New Port's outdated infrastructure, making room for a more advanced and modern power plant. 

For the next four to five years, the PUC has carefully scheduled this transition in order to guarantee a stable energy supply that can sufficiently sustain the nation's economy. 

Seychelles currently has a total power generation capacity of 129MW, mostly produced by PUC, through its diesel power plants and solar farms.