By rosebell
The developer issued the Specific Procurement Notice on 15 September, inviting contractors to enter an initial selection process ahead of award of the engineering, procurement, construction, testing and commissioning contract.
The latest procurement represents a change from an earlier strategy that envisaged separate civil, electro-mechanical and transmission packages. MHPL now intends to select between one and three contractors to enter Pre-Construction Services Agreements (PCSAs), ahead of the main EPC contract. The selection will consider financial capacity, technical capability and target price.
Located on the Shire River in southern Malawi, between the existing Tedzani and Kapichira hydropower schemes, Mpatamanga comprises two cascading dams and generating stations approximately 6km apart.
The latest MHPL procurement notice puts their combined installed capacity at 365.6MW, comprising 306MW at the main plant and 59.6MW at the downstream regulating plant. MHPL’s current project website also gives the overall installed capacity as 365.6MW, although other project documents use slightly different capacities reflecting successive stages of design development.
The main scheme includes significant underground works. Current design documentation describes two concrete-lined, horseshoe-shaped headrace tunnels between the reservoir intakes and surge shaft connections. The tunnels have an internal diameter of 9m and lengths of approximately 755m and 715m respectively.
Each tunnel connects to a 7.5m-diameter surge shaft and a 30m-high, 33m-diameter surge tank. The waterways convey water from the main reservoir through the left-bank massif to the main powerhouse downstream. Earlier layout studies also incorporated a diversion tunnel through the right bank for construction of the main dam.
MHPL’s current project overview describes the main dam as a 55m-high structure creating a 20.2km² reservoir containing 272.5Mm³ at full supply level. Water will pass through the underground waterways to the main powerhouse around 1km downstream. A second, 35m-high regulating dam approximately 6km farther downstream creates a 1km² regulating reservoir and feeds the smaller generating station.
The development also includes separate substations and two transmission lines. A 64km-long 400kV line will connect the main powerhouse with the existing Phombeya substation, while an 11.4km, 132kV line will connect the regulating plant to the Tedzani-Kapichira transmission line.
MHPL is being developed by EDF power solutions and SN Malawi BV, owned by TotalEnergies, British International Investment and Norfund, in partnership with the Government of Malawi and the International Finance Corporation.
The World Bank approved a US$350M International Development Association grant for the project in May 2025. The wider scheme is being developed as a public-private partnership and is expected to cost more than US$1.5bn including financing costs.
Under the new procurement, the virtual data room containing the Initial Selection Document will open on 21 September. A contractor site visit is scheduled for 12–15 October, with applications due on 13 November.
MHPL’s current programme anticipates financial close and the start of main construction in 2027, followed by full commissioning in 2032. Main works construction is expected to take approximately 54 months.
