Zesco Limited has announced that it will not commence power imports tomorrow as earlier announced.
Acting Company Managing Director Webster Musonda said some proposals that have been made to the Energy Regulation Board will need to be finished before imports can commence.
Speaking when the Parliamentary committee on Energy, Water Development and Tourism, Mr Musonda said the nation will be informed when the imports will commence.
Mr Musonda said the Power Utility company was scheduled to commence power imports from South Africa at a cost of about 21 million dollars monthly for about six months.
And Mr Musonda announced that the company is in the process of revising upwards the current eight hours load shedding schedule.
He said the current eight hours of load shedding has not helped as it has not worked according to the company’s expectations as consumers are not observing the switch and save.
Meanwhile, Kariba North Bank Station Manager Edward Simbaya has disclosed that ZESCO is currently producing 290 megawatts of electricity per day instead of the normal 500 megawatts.
Speaking when Energy Minister Mathew Nkhuwa paid a courtesy call on Siavonga District Commissioner Lovemore Kanyama, Mr Simbaya said reduced electricity production is aimed at sustaining power generation.
He said the company is likely to produce at the same capacity for the next four months to avoid depleting the water.
But where are those alternative power generating sources lungu was commissioning every month with the resident PF rats on LT dancing and signing …….
ati ” no more load shedding ” ????
It is better to be in dark than pay to South Africa who will not send you electricity anyway.
Only foolish management can give away million of dollars.
It is better to be in dark than pay to South Africa who will not send you electricity anyway.
Only fuulish management can give away million of dollars.
SATIRE: Just close Zesco.
You can’t be waiting for the rains to make electricity.
Japan is surrounded by water but never uses hydro electricity.
Worst case scenario – it never rains in 2019 – 2020 season.
Now, that’s Agony.
A worst-case scenario is a concept in risk management wherein the planner, in planning for potential disasters, considers the most severe possible outcome that can reasonably be projected to occur in a given situation.
Climate change is menacing and unpredictable, galamukani abale.
Ba Thorn in the Flesh, get your facts right. Yes, Japan is surrounded by water in the form of an ocean but I have never heard of a country getting hydropower from an ocean. Japan gets its energy from nuclear energy and is still recovering from a nuclear accident that happened some 18 years ago. Ever heard of the Fukushima Daiichi Accident? Following a major earthquake, a 15-metre tsunami disabled the power supply and cooling of three Fukushima Daiichi reactors, causing a nuclear accident on 11 March 2011. All three cores largely melted in the first three days. The way to go is Maamba Thermal Power Plant just like America, China and India, the three largest polluters rely on coal to generate their electricity.
Ba Thorn in the Flesh, get your facts right. Yes, Japan is surrounded by water in the form of an ocean but I have never heard of a country getting hydropower from an ocean. Japan gets its energy from nuclear energy and is still recovering from a nuclear accident that happened some 18 years ago. Ever heard of the Fukushima Daiichi Accident? Following a major earthquake, a 15-metre tsunami disabled the power supply and cooling of three Fukushima Daiichi reactors, causing a nuclear accident on 11 March 2011. All three cores largely melted in the first three days. The way forward is Maamba Thermal Plant just like the three biggest polluters in the world, America, China and India, rely on coal to generate their electricity.
Bafwile they thought they can get free advance electricity. Now they have hit a wall because Eskom is also broke after the Zuma looting. Eskom needs those dollars now & in advance & PF is broke. Gone are those lies of ‘a turkey ship of mozambique’ which they lied to steal noney
@1.4 – 1.5
Ironically, everywhichway you look at it, the science of producing power starts from the energy required to turn those machines (turbines). Hydro, Thermal, Nuclear aims to achieve this goal (turn that wheel). That’s the fact.
So however you want to think about this Zambian Engineers gotta work up. You want to buy electricity from SA which buys from Maputo?
If you critically analyze the supply chain, you’ll actually be buying power from Mozambique via SA.
Garamukani!
@1.7. Yes I agree with you that you need some engine to rotate the turbine but water from the ocean has no power to drive these engines unless the power is from tidal waves which technology is in its infancy. There is one exception where there is no need to have an engine to turn a turbine to generate electricity. Solar Photovoltaic (PV) is a technology that converts sunlight (solar radiation) into direct current electricity by using semiconductors. When the sun hits the semiconductor within the PV cell, electrons are freed and form an electric current. Solar PV technology is generally employed on a panel (hence solar panels). Solar concentrated power fits in with your hypothesis because it heats up water into steam and the steam engines rotates the turbine.
Kikikikiki baSpaka tamuumfwa yama. You are calling Mr kudos, Sharon, thorn in the as.s & the rest of these Pf cretins as “resident rats”…! Anyway, HH is giving them sleepless nights
Very simple, allow the homosexual to urinate and sweat in the Kariba north bank so that instead of using 2 machines, we open all 6.
Cry us a river folks (we need you to fill up the dam), this is beyond h², mr I can fix it, can’t touch this.
Dununa dogs have failed…. Jona meno meno ch!mbwi no plan
Greetings from electrified London..can I hear a dununa reverse please
it’s a shame. these guys don’t have a foresight even when the writing is on the wall
he was busy begging at the un in ny and talking how Zambia is tackling hunger, really?
I know they do things just so they win the next elections. if they go through this time around i’ll have Zambian adults to blame
ZESCO has been completely destroyed by the PF that have corruptly striped it of all it`s competence.It is no longer an institution that can reliably serve the people of Zambia. Zesco can not import power from South Africa because the PF Government has failed to provide the necessary financial safeguards for the transaction and Zesco is totally broke.Zambians should just wake up and defend thier country.There is no government but a corrupt and criminal group running the country.Sad thing thing is there is no opposition eithr.A so called UPND party with the likes of Kakoma, Katuta, Nalumango,Mwiimbu is so unappealing to majority of Zambians that the PF group of criminals remains an option even in 2021. UPND please improve your image and your outlook. You can not win an election in your…
…in your current packaging .It is simply not nationally representative and attractive enough.
Surely PF as always they let the hole in the pot become way too big before they decide to boil water in it without thinking that the water will run out and the fire will be put out by the dripping water and in the end achieve nothing while suffering great costs. 126 million dollars in six months to simply cut load shedding by 2 hours is really horrible plan and thinking. This is not a government anyone will have hope in.
Let’s sing that song that went viral once more “ low low low low low low, bola naikosa,aba Bambi bola naikosa” and you thought governing a country is as easy kicking ball like a 2 year old child ayi…
@Nostradumus. Who said South Africa will not send electricity to Sh!thole Zambia. You pay Eskom will supply electricity. I wonder how the uneducated xenophobes can produce electricity for themselves and the whole of Southern Africa? Cowstradumus ! Driving a taxi and sleeping in the streets in US doesn’t make one smart. You miss nshima I reckon.
Majority of the comments are dull and childish. Why do we fail to debate issues in this country without resorting to insults? Let’s talk about solutions. What are the root causes of the problems at ZESCO?
Majority of the comments are dull and childish. Why do we fail to debate issues in this country without resorting to insults? Let’s talk about solutions. What are the root causes of the problems at ZESCO?
The cost of 300MW per month of US$21,000,000 may sound a lot. But what is it in terms of cents per Kwh? Electric power consumption by homes and businesses is sold by the kilowatt hour, which is running time in hours multiplied by the power in kilowatts. In a month the power to be imported is 300MW or 300,000KW. Now the power consumed in a month (the running time) will be 300,000KW (30MW) multiplied by a month which has 30 days multiplied by 24 hours (720 hours) i.e. 300,000*720= 216,000,000.00 Kwh. Now the cost of this power is USD 21,000,000 therefore the unit cost is 21,000,000 divided by 216,000,000 = $0.0972 or to the nearest $0.10 or 10 cents. I believe the mines pay about 10 cents and the domestic consumer less than 5 cents. And now for the domestic consumer, the question is who…
Cont’d will pay the other 5 cents?
Who has failed in this case ? Is it Zesco or Govt ..Where does planning comes in this situation ?
Bloody hell, this is catastrophic! It’s all darkness out there, muno mwaha mu nyelile mwa simbwii!
Do Zesco housewives switch and save?
Zesco get real – after 8 or 10 hours without electricity people need to get in with their lives, like bathing, listening to the news or watch TV, cook, switch on security lights etc. With all those MBA’s and PhD’s you employ, surely somebody can work out a distribution that is equitable to all in consideration of the situation we all are aware of.
Let’s swallow our pride. Imports are temporal. Lets use them same money and put up a solar plant, suffer for the next three months and yet up lift our power power generation capacity in future !
Better still a thermal power plant like the one at Maamba which has done wonders such that at one time we were told the increased load shedding was due to one machine breaking down, taking out 150MW from the system. I would have expected us to return to the earlier load shedding schedule if the machine has now been repaired. It was supposed to take 15 days to repair it.
Thanks for the facts Senior Engineer RTD. That is what we need not, insults and politics.
Now today, ESKOM imports electricity from Mozambique while the other day it was importing from Namibia. Are people just guessing or what? ESKOM’s electricity is power generated from coal right here in Mzansi. Imports are for emergency purposes only. And SOWETO’s bill to ESKOM is in billions of Rands because the govt needs the vote.
The only problem with our current government is that it’s self centered.it doesnt listen to the cries of the people but to its corrupt members.giving HH a chance can maybe tackle the harm of has done……
It’s 2 much with zesco !!!the last time I heard Mr Lungu was that we will not have roadshiding up to 2021and this is 2019!
It’s 2 much with zesco !!!the last time I heard Mr Lungu was that we will not have roadshiding up to 2021and this is 2019!
One alternative plan for now a temp plan may be zesco should install limitors in every house giving us maybe a limit of 3000 wats a home that’s enough to light the house watch TV and run the fridge I am sure this will help everyone