Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) has admitted the resurgence of prolonged power blackouts in the country, blaming it on a number of factors, including a mismatch between electricity demand and supply.
Escom chief executive officer Kamkwamba Kumwenda made the remarks on Saturday on the sidelines of a meeting with the Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources and Climate Change which toured Malawi Electrification Access Programme (Meap) sites in Mzuzu.
He said power demand is currently neck to neck with supply where sometimes, an emergency breakdown or maintenance work involving a major electricity supplier like Electricity Generation Company (Egenco) would lead to load shedding.
Data we obtained recently show that Escom is facing about a 27 megawatts (MW) power deficit during evening peak hours.
Escom public relations manager Kitty Chingota confirmed recently that from 6.30pm, the electricity demand reaches an average of 396MW against the available 370MW power supply.
Escom receives an average total of about 460MW from both hydro and solar power electricity generation.
Said Chingota: “The power supply during the day is around 460MW, including solar. However, at 18h30 when the peak of 396MW occurs, the sun would have set hence there is no solar power.
“Therefore, we are left with the supply of about 370MW from hydro power stations only hence the deficit that necessitates the load shedding.”
According to Kumwenda, apart from faults on the transmission and distribution networks, they have seen some natural growth in power demand, leading to a challenge in supply.
But he said Escom is counting on the commissioning of the Malawi- Mozambique Power Interconnector project next year to cushion demand and thereby have some power on reserve.
“The period when we did not have electricity, there were many companies that resorted to using generators. So, when Egenco resolved that issue on Kapichira Power Station, the power has now stabilised.
“It means now people have confidence, so all those that were on generators are now going back to the grid. But also some companies have confidence and are starting up operations so that is pushing demand higher especially during peak hours,” he said.
Taking questions from committee member Bright Msaka during the meeting, Kamkwamba admitted that Escom is not keeping up with the growing demand and soaring population, saying without development partners, they cannot make a dent since on their own, they can only achieve 30 000 connections a year due to lack of resources.
Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources and Climate Change chairperson Werani Chilenga said in an interview that government institutions that owe Escom money such as Blantyre Water Board (BWB) must repay to ease funding challenges that have rocked the power supplier for years.
On Meap, Kamkwamba said they have reached 84 125 connections and they are remaining with 94 875 connections of the total 180 000 connections, a target set for June 30 2025.
