Zambia is set to become an important regional energy supplier, according to The Africa Report.
A series of new power plants to come on line this year will make the country’s electricity production surge.
Zambia currently produces a little more than 2,200MW, but this is set to increase by more than 600MW by the end of the year as the Kariba North Bank extension and Maamba power plant begin production.
They will be further boosted by output from the 120MW Itezhi-Tezhi hydro-power generating station, which is slated to start production in 2015.
Zambia’s copper mines are hungry for power, and the extra capacity needed for new mining projects cannot arrive soon enough for the mining firms.
In April, Zambia’s energy regulator hiked electricity tariffs for mining companies by 28.8%.
The mines ministry predicts that annual copper production will rise from 760,000tn in 2013 to 1m tonnes in 2015.
A member of the Southern African Power Pool, which has facilitated electricity sales, Zambia already provides up to 100MW of emergency electricity to neighbouring Botswana.
Read more on The Africa Report.
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