The Zambian Government has paid $27 million to Eskom of South Africa for the importation of 300 megawatts of electricity for a period of one month.
Finance Minister Bwalya Ng’andu told Journalists in Lusaka this morning that a bank transfer of the amount to Eskom was made on Thursday.
Dr Ng’andu however said he is not sure which day the power will start coming to Zambia but assured that ZESCO was working hard to ensure the imports starting flowing.
Dr Ngandu said ZESCO will import 300 megawatts of power from Eskom.
He said he will engage Zesco to find out when the imports will start after making the payment.
“We have met the obligation of importing power from ESKOM in South Africa. We have paid for one month for us to import 300MW from ESKOM. I will have to talk to Zesco to see when the imports will start, but we have the resources,” Dr Dr. Ng’andu said.
Meanwhile, Dr Ng’andu also revealed that Maamba Coilleries will be paid part of the US$20 owed to the thermal power plant by ZESCO.
He said the balance will be paid in the course of next week so that the power plant resumes its normal capacity supply of 300 megawatts of electricity unlike the current situation where the company is operating at half capacity and only providing 150 megawatts of power to the national grid.
He said the only challenge remaining in terms of stabilizing power supply is with Maamba Collieries Limited.
Dr. Ng’andu narrated that one machine at Maamba Collieries is down that generates about 150MW of power.
He also disclosed that the government is making some payment to Maamba Collieries Limited today for the money it owes the company.
We got money kanshi…that’s a lot…! Let’s also import wealth of our citizens and create more opportunities for businesses and entrepreneurs…
What happens after one month? Zambians should have learned to cope with load shedding for now and used that money for solar energy for a longer term solution.
idyots!!!
Worsted millions.
It is raining in Zambia, why not wait for another 1 month of misery?
$27 million giving away for a sake of a $200,000 commission to ministers??
$27 million that is 20 primary schools renovated!!
Shiit idyots
I’m sure someone in government has prefitted from this transaction. The true cost of this electricity might be a fraction of the figure reported.
And as previous bloggers have stated, this money could have been used to invest in alternative energy or even fixing that broken machines at maamba.
Enjoy the kickbacks ba kapoli.
Why import for a month instead of spending it on agriculture? Bane this is a bottomless pit we are trying to burry. We already have gone for months and the rains are coming we can endure; let’s spend money wisely bane. What’s wrong with our leaders kaka?
Why import for a month instead of spending it on agriculture? Bane this is a bottomless pit we are trying to burry. We already have gone for months and the rains are coming we can endure; let’s spend money wisely bane. What’s wrong with our leaders kaka?
Zambians only think of 30 days and after that what next….this is total waste of US$27 million…The worst government with the worst and visionless President Edgar Lungu…uselessness PF bandits
This is nothing. Zambia has approximately 2,000,000 households of which only 28% are electrified=560,000. Divide $27,000,000 by 560,000 and you get about $50 going to each household….not really as the industrial and agricultural sectors consume the bulk of power in Zambia. This is an exercise in futility and as Habazoka had advised, we should just have suffered a little bit longer than waste this hard to come by forex
Thanks Dr.Ng’andu, WE HOPE THIS IS NOT ANOTHER SPIN as we have heard a lot about these payments, different stories from different Ministers, VP, including the President himself. All telling us about payments already made but different amounts, with different installments.NOW THAT WE ARE HEARING FROM YOU, THE NEW MINISTER OF FINANCE, WE MAY BELIEVE BUT CAUTIOUSLY BCOZ THE CROP OF PEOPLE YOU ARE WORKING WITH …AWEEE TE SAANAAA MWEE!!Whether it rains a lot this season and power generation recovers, come 2021, the PF MUST COME AND PAY FOR THE INJURY THEY HAVE CAUSED TO THE LIVELIHOODS OF ZAMBIANS!!
Whom do we listen to now? Am confused. President says this, spokesperson Dora says that, Minister says something else, Zesco say whatever they want to say ranging from water levels to whatever they can imagine etc including hiking tariffs – yaba!. Who is telling the truth now. Are we not tired of listening to different stories surrounding the same power problem from different people.
Just solve the problem guys. Lets work we are tired now.
Disaster!!!
Why not clear our own maamba first and get the 300mw from them for s month instead of paying eskom.
we have a deficit of 872 megawatts thus we are only importing 300 from SA and 300mg from Mumba so we still have a deficit of 272 mw and that 600mw we buy is costing us $usd47 million a month ,not good.
It’s very embarrassing that you’re paying in smaller instalments. This doesn’t take care of what we’re owing already and still falls short of the required initial $41M.
US$30 million for 300megawatts is way too expensive, this is another fire engine wheelbarrow scandal I smell out here!
Today these corrupt termites have to take 14 days to come up with mere $27million and this is a sovereign nation. They have depleted all our resources due to mismanagement and corruption. Yesterday they were buying everything #42by42 at great expense so they could get mark up.
They should have paid atleast three
Months so that by then the rains can fill the kariba.Invest more in
Solar which does not depend on climate change.Increase the tarrffs
Abit which can make zesco sustainable.
@9Malaiti,Sustainability of ZESCO depends on having a serious Govt NOT EXORBITANT TARIFFS WITHOUT PROPER LEADERSHIP like this crop of leaders who have abused that potentially profitable institution!
Backward, uneducated, uncivilised xenophobes smiling all the way to the bank.
It’s about time. Hope it helps reducing the load shedding time back to 4 hours. We have suffered enough.
They will instead increase export of power to neighbours and further increase load-shedding so they can profit from this transaction.
With due respect, one would have thought you would pay maamba everything first because they can guarantee supply even next month!
And please start talking to the media only after all facts are collected. It’s not sitting well with citizens that you would give us your own part of the story then you say the other part ask Zesco. It was the same during the press conference last week.
And if I recall, the government spokes person had said you had already paid. Is this the final payment or only first installment? We are confused now on these payments.
By the way, we should just wait for the rains or some one had mentioned channeling water from Luapula, is $27m not enough to do that?
minister consider paying retirees at pensions board. is there anyone out there who can assist to tell this man of the need to pay retirees? how can you waste such a huge sum of money for just one month of amalight? shame.
Don’t worry my people; as 2021 draws nigh things will work superbly! You will see how recovery will work despite droughts and Kariba Dam wall woes. Zimene wanaba zizacoka. Just get your hats ready kutapula because as soon as you vote them back in ni back to basics. These are not normal times and these are not the usual leaders with hearts. Everything is mixed with politics – muzakaula!
As Alangizi Ba Chitukuko we are happy and done our research and have spoken to some people in some part of communities have confirmed the improvement in the electricity loadshedding which has reduced because of the effort made by the government to import power from Eskom. Therefore never be cheated by any opposition political leaders who promise the innocent Zambians that they will end loadshedding within 90days once voted into office that is a blue lie. The current government has already set up measures to end loadshedding.
The government under His Excellency The President Dr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu is in a hurry to develop this country and will not allow any lawlessness which may affect his vision, however if anyone is proven guilty has to be held accountable for committing a crime.
They owe ESKOM money so surely they need to pay back the money they owe before they will export electricity to Zambia. Tell the truth ! How much was for debt pay back and how much is left to import power ??????????
If we believe anything we read, close to $6 mil. (R89 Mil) should be for debt repayment leaving $21 mil for electricity import. Why did ESKOM resume load shedding SA last week if it has surplus to sell?
Is Maamba COLLIERIES (not coilleries) really owed only $20 or is this a typo, Lusaka Times?
And what economic value will be realised from this choice the government has made?. Will the returns exceed the cost in one month? Is the expense really worth it to only reduce the loadshedding by 2 hours?
Why don`t they settle everything with Maamba as it is a Zambian power producer….infact we need more FDI like Maamba in Electricity, I would rather the money goes to projects that employ zambians and are based here…….Eskom is more expensive and can charge whatever they like.
$ 27 million dollars of electricity for one month, only zesco will benefit and that money will go back into the pockets of pf politicians shame