Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) has admitted that the generators which were installed in Malawi earlier this year are failing to end electricity challenges.
In a statement on Thursday, the power supplier said there have been power supply challenges both with the diesel power generators and the hydropower generating plants from which it buys electricity.
According to ESCOM, the emergency power diesel generators managed by Aggreko and Egenco are used for a limited number of hours per day since they operate during peak hours when demand surpasses supply.
“Due to such challenges, electricity supply has at certain times failed to satisfy minimum demand thereby prolonging the load shedding hours. The situation has been worsened by the increasing demand for electricity due to the onset of the cold season and the oncoming of the tobacco processing season,” ESCOM said.
Meanwhile, ESCOM hopes to reduce the power cuts by bringing in more generators which will add 53 Megawatts when they are installed in July and by buying 20 Megawatts from Zambia.
“Furthermore, 40MW from a solar power plant generating IPP [Independent Power Producer] shall be added to the grid by the end of January 2019. Over a total of 70MW from solar power generation shall be added to the grid by the end of 2019,” ESCOM says.
The power supplier expects the electricity challenges in Malawi to be over by 2022 when 750MW will be added to the national grid from coal power generation and through power interconnection with Mozambique.
How much diesel does they consume at a given period of time
Please Escom try as much as you can to solve once and for all this power issue. We can lure investors if we have stable power supply hence the creation of most wanted jobs. Businesses in our country can thrive if the supply of power is running smoothly.
Where does the company buy it’s diesel from
It wll be much better ‘!!
Zauchitsiru basi.