PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

Botswana’s 11th National Development Plan for 2017-2023 highlights the importance of ensuring

security of electricity supply and any failure at Eskom during the next few years will have a

significant and negative impact on Botswana’s economy if Botswana is still dependant on Eskom for

electricity supply. As such, the Government of Botswana has approved an initiative to facilitate

holders of Coal Bed Methane (CBM) prospecting licenses to develop a well field and CBM power

plant at a production cap of 100 MW. The Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) is to procure the

power at sustainable, cost-reflective tariffs.

Sekaname (Pty) Ltd (a Botswana registered company and subsidiary of Kalahari Energy Limited)

therefore wishes to generate electricity by constructing up to a 100 MW gas engine power station

and a supporting gas well field network within a coal bed methane mineral concession area.

Sekaname has therefore appointed Ecosurv Environmental Consultants (Pty) Ltd to undertake the

Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) Study for the proposed gas abstraction and

power station.

The proposed 100 MW project would be located in the Mmashoro area of the Serowe/Palapye Sub-

District of the Central District, to the western side of the A14 highway which runs from Orapa to

Serowe. This area is located 22 km north-west of Paje. The area under study is 295 km² as indicated

in the Figure below (project location Map). The area is divided into northern and southern sections

for the well field development. The anticipated lifespan of the project is 30 years.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS

INTRODUCTION

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

The produced power would be evacuated to the Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) grid via a 220

kV transmission line to Serule which would be approximately 80 km long. It would connect to the

existing 220 kV infrastructure at this point. The well field would initially consist of approximately 260

wells, each serving a 16 hectare area (the wells would be 400 m apart) followed by approximately

350 wells, each serving a 32 hectare area (wells here would be 570 m apart). All the wells would be

drilled over the 30 year life of the facility. The total area to be included in the study that could

potentially be covered by wells is 295 km². The overall concept of the proposed development

showing the necessary infrastructural components is shown in the figure below.

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

Approximately 250 temporary construction workers would be required for the well drilling exercise,

300 - 500 workers for the midstream facilities and 500 to 700 for the power station and downstream

work (1000 - 1500 workers in total). These employees would be accommodated in a self-supporting

main camp on site. For safety reasons, no temporary (or permanent accommodation) would be

located inside the power station construction area. All ablutions would be plumbed into a central

septic tank. Sewage removal would be done by bowser and disposed of at the Serowe sewage

ponds. Geysers at the camp would be 250 litre solar. Water supply would be from water tanks

mounted on stands and pipe work would have a 25 mm hdpe supply. Five boreholes would be drilled

for domestic water use. The boreholes would also supply water for field operations, especially

during the initial drilling phase until the water treatment facility and water reticulation is in place.

Water emanating from the wells would be collected into a maximum of two storage tanks each with

a volume of approximately 2 000 m³. A reverse osmosis plant will be installed for cleaning the water

to Botswana’s potable drinking water standards (BOS32: 2015). The reverse osmosis plant would be

designed for an initial capacity of up to 10 000 m³ per day to cater for the high initial water

production rate. It is anticipated that at least 7800 m³/day of purified water and 2000 m³/day of

concentrated brine will be produced initially. The volume of water production will reduce over the

lifetime of the project. Clean water will be pumped to a new BPC Southern Wellfield Storage pump

station, as well as being used internally to the well field for drilling and other purposes. The brine

from the desalination plant will be collected to evaporate from two 840 m x 420 m evaporation

ponds (70 ha). The general layout of the water treatment plant is shown in the figure below and it

comprises of an area of 120 m x 70 m.

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

The existing land use in the area is ranching and four farms are located within the project area. The

proponent proposes to lease portions of these farms and to acquire one of the farms. With the

exception of the larger infrastructural requirements for the proposal (e.g. power plant area), the

land would continue to be used for agricultural activities and ranching. The displacement of people

or property is not anticipated.

The following are some of the project related activities or requirements:

Well field and related infrastructural components;

Water treatment plant;

Gas Engine Power Station;

220 kV Transmission Line Route To Serule;

Gas and Water Collection and Compressors’ Station;

Waste Storage Area and Recycling Yard;

Labour for Construction, Operations and Maintenance;

Temporary Construction Phase Housing and Office/Workshop Facilities;

Construction Phase Drillers’ Camps (Kalahari Gas Corporation);

Operations and Maintenance (O&M)/ Permanent Labour Housing and Facilities; and

Access off the A14 and Internal Roads.

The following potential impacts could occur as a result of the development of the proposed project:

Drawdown of groundwater levels as a result of pumping water from coalbeds during the

CBM extraction;

Methane gas flaring would generate greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2);

Soil erosion of disturbed areas during construction and decommissioning/closure phases;

Contamination of soils due to seepage from brine ponds, construction equipment, vehicle

spillages, material storage, general waste and sewage effluent;

Disturbance to key habitats and species within the project area;

Noise impacts during construction and operation phases;

Loss or disturbance to archaeological, paleontological and cultural heritage resources;

Visual impact and visual quality of the project area and its sense of place;

Influx of workers to the area could have negative social impacts in the nearby towns,

including pressure on local social resources e.g. schools etc.;

Delivery of a well-priced and reliable supply of electricity to Botswana;

Increased (physical and financial) access to and availability of electricity in the country;

Botswana to obtain independence from external sources of electricity;

Creation of job opportunities during construction and operation phases;

Transfer of skills and skills development;

Community social responsibility benefits; and

Reduced greenhouse gases from the power plant when compared to the emissions from a

coal-fired power plant.

POTENTIAL IMPACTS OF THE PROJECT

PROJECT RELATED REQUIREMENTS/ACTIVITIES

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

A number of specialist studies will be carried out as part of the Environmental and Social Impact

Assessment (ESIA) process. Specialist studies will commence during the scoping phase and these will

include:

Social impact assessment studies;

Archaeological impact assessment studies;

Air and noise quality studies;

Hydrogeology risk assessment; and

Biodiversity studies.

The objective of the ESIA is to determine how the proposed project could impact on the

environment and on the livelihoods of people. The ESIA findings will influence the final project

design and form the basis for an environmental decision and possible approval of the project by the

authorities. The ESIA process will conform to the requirements of the EA Act of 2011 that prescribes

the following approach:

Scoping Phase: This phase involves the identification of concerns, issues and impacts of the project

and defines the scope of work to be considered in the ESIA. The study will focus on the potential

positive and negative impacts that may be caused by the project.

Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment Phase: This entails identification and assessment of

possible impacts (environmental and social) of the proposed activity, detailed specialist

investigations, recommendation for mitigation measures and the preparation of an Environmental

Management Plan (EMP). An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be submitted to the

Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) at the end of this Phase. The figure below depicts the

legislated EIA process.

SPECIALIST STUDIES

ESIA PROCESS

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

Anyone who is interested or affected by the proposed project has a right to participate in the ESIA

process. Please make use of the following opportunities:

Study the information made available in this Background Information Document;

Contact the consultations team to obtain further project information, and/or raise issues and concerns (contact details provided on the attached comment sheet);

Register as an Interested and Affected Party in order to receive future project information and/or formally record issues and concerns;

Complete the Comment Sheet (attached) and return by hand, mail, fax or e-mail; and

Attend the public stakeholder meeting to obtain further project information, interact with the Project Team, and/or raise issues and concerns. A public meeting will be held at the following place:

Place Date Time

Mmashoro Kgotla 12th November 2018 0800hrs

Majwanaadipitse Kgotla 13th November 2018 0800hrs

Paje Kgotla 14th November 2018 0800hrs

Tshimoyapula Kgotla 16th November 2018 0800hrs

The purpose of the meeting will be to formally announce the project, the ESIA process and provide

interested and affected parties (I&APs) with an opportunity to ask questions and raise concerns

related to the project and ESIA process and to record these questions and concerns. These concerns

will then be addressed during the ESIA process.

Parties involved in the process

The following parties have been identified as key stakeholders in the ESIA processes:

Stakeholder list* Reason for identification

Mmashoro, Paje, Majwanaadipitse, Tshimoyapula and Serule communities

Communities within the vicinity of the project area.

Serowe Sub-District Development Committee (Sub-DDC).

Main district planning structure that oversees implementation of Sub-district’s planning documents/tools.

Key government departments not represented at the Sub-district meeting such as;

The Department of Waste; Management and Pollution Control;

The Department of Water Affairs;

Botswana Geo-science Institute;

Positioned to advise on the national planning implications of the proposed project.

Botswana Power Corporation Positioned to advise on the planning implications of the proposed project.

Directly affected parties e.g. farmers The proposed project lies within a number of leasehold ranches.

INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

*Preliminary stakeholder list

If you would like to participate in the ESIA process of this project, kindly fill in your personal details,

make your comments in the sheet below and return to: Miss Carol Sethunya Pansiri

Postal address: P. O. Box 201306 Gaborone

Telephone number: 3161533

Fax number: 3161878

E-mail: carol@ecosurv.com

Please fill in your personal details below:

TITLE NAME

ORGANISATION

ADDRESS

TEL NO

FAX NO

CELL NO

E-MAIL

COMMENTS (Please use additional sheets if you wish)

Highlight issues that you feel should be addressed as part of the Environmental and Social Impact

Assessment (ESIA):

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Non-Governmental Organizations such as Khama Rhino Sanctuary.

Positioned to advocate and lobby for environmental related issues.

COMMENT SHEET

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT

Provide any additional comment(s) or issues if any:

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Kindly highlight names and contact details of neighbours/interested or affected parties who you

believe should be added to the mailing list:

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Your participation was highly appreciated.