On June 19, the Busuanga Hydropower Station in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), invested by China Railway Resources Group Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of China Railway Group Limited, reached a milestone of 1,000 days of safe operation.
The cumulative power generation has exceeded 4.246 billion kilowatt-hours, equivalent to saving approximately 1.27 million tons of standard coal and avoiding carbon dioxide emissions by about 3.49 million tons, significantly promoting local economic growth and mining development.
The station is located about 400 kilometers west of Lubumbashi, the second-largest city in the DRC, and 130 kilometers from the provincial capital, Kolwezi. It is the first large-scale modern smart hydropower station in the DRC built entirely using Chinese standards, equipment, and technology, and the only one operating under the BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) business model in the DRC. It is also the largest hydropower station built in the Katanga region in the past 60 years and a representative project of Chinese enterprises under the Belt and Road Initiative.
The DRC is rich in mineral resources, and shows a rapid development in resource extraction industries. However, power shortages and outdated power facilities have become a bottleneck restricting local industrial and economic development. Building a large hydropower station in the Busuanga Gorge on the lower reaches of the Lualaba River has been a shared aspiration of mining companies and the Congolese people.
In November 2017, the Busuanga Hydropower Station started construction. After four years of arduous efforts, it connected its first generating unit to the grid on September 22, 2021, and in October 2023, started generating electricity.
According to Wang Jiangtao, general manager of China-DRC Busuanga Hydropower Co., Ltd., the project earned 15 authorized patents and nine major awards. It achieved significant technical breakthroughs, such as roller-compacted concrete dam construction technology under the large diurnal temperature variation in equatorial tropical regions, which has been recognized as a classic case supporting the compilation of national industry standards for roller-compacted concrete arch dam design.
In May 2024, representatives attending the 7th Congo International Energy Conference visited the station and highly praised its advanced modern management and clean energy production mode. Since its commissioning, the station has achieved an average annual power generation of 1.32 billion kilowatt-hours, accounting for about one-tenth of the DRC’s total power generation, greatly alleviating the severe local power shortage, and promoting local industrial and socio-economic development.
“During the construction and operation period of the Busuanga Hydropower Station, we placed great emphasis on environmental protection,” said Zhao Wenguang, then deputy general manager of China Railway Resources Group Co., Ltd.
“We aim to build an ‘ecological corridor’ along the ancient Lualaba River and create a green hydropower station,” Zhao added.
It is reported that since the commissioning of the station, safety operation has always been the top priority. “1,000 days of safe operation is not enough. The next goals are 3,000 days, 5,000 days. We will stay here to ensure its safe production and power generation, and satisfy the energy needs for the DRC’s socio-economic development,” said Wang Jiangtao.
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