Botswana is seeking to upgrade its grid infrastructure to support the growth of the energy sector and enable electricity exports across the region. The North-West Transmission Grid 400 kV Project (Lots 5 and 6), located at the northern terminus of the national grid, will provide a critical transmission link to Zambia through Kazungula.
Project overview
Investment opportunity
The Botswana Power Corporation is interested in pursuing PPP models, particularly Design, Finance, Build, Operate, Manage and Transfer arrangements, to encourage private sector participation and accelerate the modernisation of Botswana's grid infrastructure.
Investment types sought
PPP; Debt
Project status
Development stage
Feasibility & due diligence
Current status / progress to date
The project is seeking PPP proposals for Lot 6, which will connect Botswana's transmission network to Zambia at Kazungula. A feasibility study to upgrade the transmission infrastructure from 200 kV to 400 kV is currently underway.
Additional project information
- Lead agency
- Botswana Power Corporation
Expected impact
611
Jobs created / supported
Economic & development benefits
- Strengthens transmission capacity to expand electricity access, reduce outages and minimise the economic impacts of load shedding
- Reduces technical losses through upgraded high-voltage infrastructure and improves the reliability of power supply for industrial and mining operations
- Enables the export of surplus electricity to regional markets, creating new revenue streams and strengthening cross-border economic integration
Climate & resilience benefits
- Reduces dependence on single-source electricity supply through strengthened regional interconnections
- Enhances energy security by enabling hydropower-reliant countries to mitigate the impacts of drought and climate-related supply disruptions
- Improves network resilience through upgraded infrastructure, including flood protection measures and heat-tolerant transmission technologies
- Supports faster system recovery following power outages and other network disruptions
- Strengthens regional energy integration and climate resilience through cross-border electricity connectivity
Contact
Contact team
For more information about this project, please contact the Commonwealth Investment Platform team.