NamPower has commissioned and energised the new N$394 million indoor 132/66/33 kV Sekelduin Substation, located east of Swakopmund.
The namibian power utility described the project as “distinguished as the first fully digital substation on the African continent” and “a decisive step-change in Namibia’s transmission architecture and a continental first – conceived, engineered, and delivered by Africans.”
According to NamPower, the substation increases capacity in the national transmission network to “unlock coastal load growth, strengthen reliability, and future-proof the Erongo region grid with a digital substation employing process bus application in accordance with IEC 61850 standards.”
The company said the substation is supplied from the Kuiseb Substation, about 35 kilometres south-east, via two parallel 132 kV overhead lines, which “improves the N-1 robustness and reduces single contingency exposure on coastal nodes.”
NamPower stated that the digital design reduces copper cabling, improves remote asset monitoring, enhances fault location accuracy and strengthens cyber-secure SCADA integration. “The digital application also provides a platform for future AI/ML integration, positioning NamPower among the top utilities in the world,” it said.
The utility explained that the facility functions as an indoor 132/66/33 kV switching station, using compact mixed technology gas-insulated switchgear for the 132 kV and 66 kV circuits, while the 33 kV circuit employs metal-enclosed switchgear. Two voltage transformation levels are derived from the 132 kV busbar.
NamPower said the high-voltage equipment is housed in a custom-designed building “to protect the equipment from the highly corrosive environments of the marine and desert regions,” with SCE Consulting Engineers and TDx Power providing engineering support, and Nexus Building Contractors responsible for construction. ACTOM supplied and integrated the main equipment.
“The Sekelduin Substation proves Africa can design and deliver world-class digital grid infrastructure—melding MTS/GIS with IEC 61850 process and station bus to harden N-1 resilience. Built by Africans for Africa, it’s a scalable blueprint for AI/ML-ready, cyber-secure substations that future-proof Namibia’s growth and set a new operational benchmark,” NamPower said.
