Tuesday, March 19, 2024

ZESCO expects load-shedding to end by the close of 2020

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ZESCO MD Victor Mundende delivering his remarks.
ZESCO MD Victor Mundende

ZESCO Managing Director Victor Mundende says he expects load-shedding to end by the close of 2020. Mr. Mundende says ZESCO is diversifying its energy sources and will start construction solar plants that will by the end of next year bring on board about seven hundred megawatts of power.

He says the power utility firm also expects to bring on board the Kafue Gorge lower power station which will have the capacity of producing 7-hundred and 50 mega watts of power.

Speaking when he featured on ZNBC’s Sunday Interview programme, Mr. Mundende said it is regrettable that citizens are being subjected to long hours of load-shedding which he has attributed to low water levels caused by climate change.

He is however hopeful that with good rains expected during the 2019-2020 rainfall season, the country will see reduced load-shedding.

Mr. Mundende said the company has several potential sites for electricity generation which if implemented could make Zambia a hub of electricity in the region.

On the planned importation of power from South Africa, the ZESCO Chief said ESKOM South Africa is demanding advance payments for two months which is in the range of about 40 million dollars.

39 COMMENTS

  1. Malabish! We’ve heard all that before. By 2020 the tone will shift from solar to nuclear and before your very eyes load shedding will be back with a bang. Zambians are incapable of lifting themselves out of poverty. We have very low expectations of ourselves and very high on careless consumption and wastage.

    • These are the incompetent people running the country. Blaming everything on nature. There are many countries around the world that don’t have as many rivers and rain as Zambia has. And yet they’ve electricity 24/7. Israel comes to mind. There’s no way a country can develop if there’s no sufficient electricity, as industries need it to operate. And now this clown is telling us load shedding will last up to the end of next year. Most likely he’s not telling the truth. It seems now like load shedding will be a permanent situation, as long as incompetent, clueless Lungu remains in office. These are indeed wasted years, and a tragedy for Zambia.

    • I think Zesco is the most mentally bankrupt company in Zambia.
      Should be extremely boring to work at Zesco, it’s like being a PF minister who get highly paid for doing nothing.

    • Come 2020, it will be a different story !!! Mark this page.
      Not worthy of further commenting. How long have people on this forum highlighted the need for Solar, why until now?

    • “ZESCO Chief said ESKOM South Africa is demanding advance payments for two months which is in the range of about 40 million dollars”
      THE STATEMENT BY THE ZESCO MD IS PATHETIC.
      INDEED WHERE ARE ALL THOSE POWER STATIONS WHICH WERE BEING COMMISSIONED LAST YEAR?
      MEANWHILE, CAN WE WITH IMMEDIATES EFFECT HAVE ALL TAXES, DUTIES, VAT etc ON DIESEL GENERATORS REDUCED TO ZERO SO THAT ZAMBIANS CAN HAVE PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS THAN PIE IN THE SKY OF END OF 2010 !!!

    • MEANWHILE, CAN WE WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT HAVE ALL TAXES, DUTIES, VAT etc ON DIESEL GENERATORS REDUCED TO ZERO SO THAT ZAMBIANS CAN HAVE PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS THAN PIE IN THE SKY OF END OF 2010 !!!

    • ALSO, WHY DON’T ZESCO SUPPLY POWER DIRECTLY TO THE MINES INSTEAD OF THROUGH “MIDDLEMAN” CEC AND THEN ZESCO CAN LIGHTEN BURDEN ON ORDINARY CONSUMERS AND MAY BE MAKE THE 40 MILLION DOLLARS TO DONATE TO ESKOM? INSTEAD OF INCREASING TARRIFS YET AGAIN ON LONG-SUFFERING ORDINARY CONSUMERS?

    • Zambians are very DULL. Zesco are the last people to want load shedding because they lose money that way. The fact is they currently don’t have enough electricity to cope with your high demand. 10 cellphones per household, 4 tvs, 3 fridges, etc.

      And all you other cows who compare electricity consumption of 1979 to that of 2019 need education. Help Zesco grow to serve you better instead of destroying property. Ubusushi bweka bweka.

    • Is Zambia for sale now? Please how much? Since it’s corrupt government and get even feed it’s own people. Bandits pf

    • Lie Detector. A lot of countries do not use water to generate electricity but use coal. The two largest economy in the world, America and China use mostly coal to generate their electricity. Even South Africa is not affected by climate change because it uses coal. Even Zambia used coal in the 1950s to generate Electricity. The coal used to come from Wankie to the Copperbelt on a single railway line which was failing to cope up with the increased electricity by the mines. It was therefore decided to construct the Kariba Dam as the cheaper solution. Zesco is partnering with its counterpart to construct a 1000MW plant in Mozambique.

  2. It won’t happen ,too incompetent….

    What happened to all those alternative to Kariba power sources lungu was commissioning left right and center ?????

  3. My household and I saw it coming and we went to RENT TO OWN where we got a diesel Generator that’s helping us now. What about the whole of government and it’s hapless Zesco? Is it now that you want to Start putting up solar sources of power to beef up the climate change-hit hydropower? Did you go to sleep or what?

  4. What happened to the cracks on the Kariba Dam wall that were so pronounced in the last load shedding. They had to let water go so that the stability of the wall is not affected. No mention of repairs has been made so far. I pray that will not be the excuse for load shedding next year.

    • Elections are always an IQ test, lo lo lo lo bola naikosa,balimuchibe bola naikosa….dununa dununa iyeee, ayeee.. Winning elections in Africa is not a sign of genius,because those who count votes are the ones who determine who goes through and not voters.

  5. ZESCO is not in a position to invest in anything. They are cash strapped, owes too much money to suppliers, the wage bill could be 60% of income and led by cadres pandering to the ruling elite. Then again PF solar projects are never productive. Just look at the solar hammer mills. Everything revolves around winning elections there after get back to factory settings.

  6. Good at theories – practical zero. This is the hundredth time we have heard of such familiar stories. The realities are never seen. 2020 campaign time – mulimbe!!!

  7. I don’t wish to go into details but Mundende doesn’t know what he’s doing at Zesco. So there’s no hope for us within the foreseeable future

  8. Year 2009, PF campaign: When PF comes into power, no more load shedding.

    This is now 10 years later, and a PF cadre cum “managing director” of zesco, assuring us that load shedding will continue for more than a year! Are these not the clowns who alk about “hub of electricity ” blablah. Completely clueless clowns together with their appointing authorities.
    Maggots. Is there no jail for incompetence and harming the national interest?

  9. It will be cheaper and faster for you to tap water from luapula, thru the copperbelt up to the Kafue river than importing or putting up solar power plant.
    By way of Concrete Culverts or use of heavy duty HDPE pipes.

  10. Ati maengineers these characters knew how much power supply the country needs in the long term planning ,but they did nothing. We produce call in Zambia why did you build biggest power plant in mamba to supply the whole nation..This issue of power you could have resolved it a long time ago ..stop telling stories in your meetings you don’t discuss the global warming effects ..Some of these characters don’t deserve to be called engineers…and engineer who can’t plan for emergency plans. ..even south can not trust you no wonder they want upfront payment. ..

  11. Talk, talk, talk, promise, promise, promise. For years that’s what its been. Does anyone here also notice that most of the PF defenders on the blog go quiet on such important matters, but rear their silly heads when it’s a story about HH or ‘dununa’?

  12. These statements below are a tip of the ice-berg of so many made;

    i) Minister Yaluma 9th JUly 2015, “Government has assured Zambians that the long periods of power rationing will end as soon as possible”

    ii) February 13th 2016, “Chief Government Spokesperson Chishimba Kambwili says government has prioritised the construction of new power stations in Luapula and Northern Provinces that will end load shedding”

    iii) 24th January, 2017, “Government through the Vice President Inonge Wina, has assured Zambians that load shedding in the country is coming to an end next year”

  13. This prayer day is messing up Zambians and we have become docile- praying for solutions when we have resources that we not utilised . God will punish us!

    The power situation is so dire that you would expect the President to address the nation on this issue. The MD of ZESCO has been in hiding when the public is being fed with contradicting statements from his subordinates.

    He promises that the power cuts will end in 12 months from now. He makes the assumption that the rain will be good- expects prayers to answered!

    The interesting part is that the company will commission 750MW of solar power!

    To put it into context, 200MW of solar would cost in the range of $500M , 750MW would be in the range of $1billion plus! The procurement ,installation and Commissioning would take at the…

  14. ..36 Months.

    If you can not afford $40M to pay Eskom, where will you get $1B for solar?

    It’s like we can not afford bread – let’s order cake.

    STOP FOOLING US!

  15. I told these people in 2017 how to solve this problem. If they had listened there WOULD BE NO LOAD SHEDDING NOW!

    Se my previous articles in the Lusaka Times – Search this —

    lusakatimes.com/2017/02/24/load-shedding-look-facts/

    lusakatimes.com/2017/03/01/zambia-short-water-power-generation-can-done

  16. If we are going to be depending on Zesco chee we will be experiencing this Loadingshadding every year.

    Why can’t government brings a permanent solution by contrasting those air power suppliers (turbines) ???

    Problem our government akaso and selfishness

    Everyday we are paying pama tolls. We are paying through fuel etc and yet we are suffering coz the your ignorance.

    Pliz if u want sell Zambia tell us some of us we want our own lands

  17. I have no better kind word to say about zesco.you are just incompetent.you knew we did not have good rains last season.why didnt you ration water from the begging..load shed say for two hours from january unlike the way you have done.it looks like you just woke up from your slumber and suddenly realised you have no enough water i the zambezi.woke up zesco.prove you are worthy running zesco.Other wise nubu chipantepante ubu.we have so much sun i zambia….invest in solar.we have lots and lots of water in the northern part of zambia.why dont you explore that are..
    When you hear then speak you think you are in good hands wait for action zero out of 10.twanaka naimwe ba zesco..dont blame climate change you are just incopetent period

  18. I.9 Nubian. I suggest you do your homework before you start insulting people, something you are renowned for. As a matter of fact, Lake Kariba was 90% full on the 13th July 2018 and in just over one year, Zesco and ZESSA have completely drained the Lake to its current 15% level, more that a nine meter drop in one year, against an annual average drop of around three meters. That in my mind simple boils down to Gross Negligence and heads should roll. So please let’s not blame it on global warming and other consumption issues. Keep your ignorance to yourself!!!

  19. Comment:We have hard poor leaders for a long time who had no vision for the future today they are blaming their luck of foresight on climate change. this challenge was anticipated way back but they continued syphoning resources from Zesco for political campaigns. the over 900 kilometers of the Zambezi river can accommodate more than 5 dams for hydro electricity whereby you are able to use the same water to generate power at different levels. non of these leaders has ever thought about it either in the Mmd or Pf government. solor could also have been done long ago. the major problem is we are not proactive. when you are prevelaged to lead you should know the responsibility that goes with leadership.

  20. For me, KK and UNIP didn’t leave any loadshedding as there was enough power but ZESCO was poorly managed. FTJs MMD cleaned up ZESCO with Robson Mwansa and made it viable. Levy’s MMD brought in mega power consumers by bringing in new mine owners and machinery-this group should have started building new power plants after what UNIP did. The tone from Mundende and PF is setting up groundwork for new plants and diversified thinking. It may take 10 years to complete these new initiatives but it sets up a good foundation for future generations of Zambians. Well done, Victor and PF.

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