A coal mining company in Zambia has observed that the country’s electricity power supply deficit is higher than the reported 1, 900 megawatt deficit.
Maamba Collieries Limited Power Plant Project Manager Gadde Ramesh said this is because of the growing demand for the commodity.
The demand has been necessitated by the increasing pace of economic development in the country.
Mr. Ramesh said Zambia is developing at a fast pace with many ongoing development projects consuming a lot of electricity, a situation which has resulted into increasing demand for power supply.
He said this situation means that the country will continue having power deficits for the next couple of years if Zambia’s power utility firm is not complemented with external supply.
He said there is therefore need to generate more power in the country in order to meet the growing demand.
Mr. Ramesh was speaking during the Engineering Institute of Zambia (EIZ) discussion forum in Lusaka last night.
He said Maamba Collieries’ US$800 million coal-powered thermal electricity generation plant will play a significant role in reducing the power deficit once it is completed.
And EIZ vice president Francis Mwape said there was need for the country to create a pool of technical cadres in engineering in order to grow and sustain productivity of the country.
Mr. Mwape noted with regret that there were few people in the country who were venturing into the engineering career.
He said this situation has the potential to constrain the productivity of the nation as well as the growth domestic product (GDP) and the competitiveness of the country.
ZANIS
Why on earth is the gov’t not investing in renewable energy or at least removing duty on renewable energy equipment like solar panels. ZESCO itself could go into partnership with residents and pay them a tariff for generating electricity if they have fitted panels and feeding excess back into the national grid….its very common in Germany where residents and small scale commercial companies are the main solar power producers.
It’s a good idea but I’m in doubt as to how many Zambian residents can afford a solar panel for domestic use. It can only happen if there is enough private capital for households coupled with the prospect of economic viability for the supplier (ZESCO).
@Nine Chale – if the incentive is there, residential customers and the private sector would take it up. ZESCO themselves would fit a 1000 panels on roofs say in Meanwood and use it to feed the national grid and a ground rent for it.
*….pay a ground rent. …
Thats a political question more than an engineering question.I cant see the current govt offering a solution at this moment when they are preoccupied with the next elections.A solution will be found in 2016 when we remove the PF regime.GOD BLESS ZAMBIA.