Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) says it is ready to connect its grid to Mozambique under the Malawi-Mozambique Power Interconnection Project after completing erecting towers for the 76.4-kilometre high-voltage power line.
The completion has come about two months after Escom indicated that by September this year Mozambique will be feeding 50 megawatts (MW) into the Malawi national grid.
Escom director of projects and development Sinosi Maliano, in an interview yesterday, noted that the completion of tower installation is a step toward realising Malawi’s energy infrastructure goals.
He said: “We are proud to announce the completion of erecting towers. This achievement marks real progress toward interconnection, which will unlock 120MW of import capacity for Malawi. It’s a powerful demonstration of regional cooperation.”
The project was launched in 2021 and seeks to connect Malawi to Mozambique’s electricity grid, enhancing power reliability and advancing regional energy integration. Escom is implementing the project on behalf of the Malawi government.
In a separate interview, Escom chief public relations and communications officer Pilirani Phiri expressed optimism that with the progress made, the project will indeed rollout in September.
He believed that the project will help to end power blackouts which the country is currently facing.
Said Phiri: “Our Mozambican counterparts have also made a tremendous progress on their side and we are optimistic that about three months from now, Malawians will start enjoying the fruits of Moma [Mozambique-Malawi] project. This project is not just about power, it is about people.”
Consumers Association of Malawi executive director John Kapito echoed Phiri’s sentiments that the additional 50MW into the national grid will help to reduce power outages.
However, he said Malawians should not celebrate much because the country’s population is still going up and that the country needs to do its own investments in electricity.
“We are the lowest in the region in terms of electricity production. The population is growing and the demand to go industrial is also getting big. Therefore, we need to start working harder than before in as far as electricity production is concerned in our country,” said Kapito.
Valued at $154 million (about K270 billion), the project is part of the broader Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) framework.
The full interconnector spans 218 km, 400 kilovolts high voltage power transmission line linking Matambo Substation in Tete, Mozambique and Phombeya Substation in Balaka, Malawi.
Malawi initially planned to tap 120MW at about $10 million (K17.4 billion) a month but it was reduced to 50MW at about $4.5 million (about K7.8 billion) per month in the first five years.
Currently, Malawi has a total installed capacity of 554.24MW comprising 401.8MW from hydro, 51.4MW from diesel power generation and 101MW from solar sources, according to Escom.
