Chief Secretary to the Government Justin Saidi has expressed satisfaction with progress in the implementation of the Mpatamanga Hydro Power Project expected to initially add 358 megawatts (MW) to the national grid.
The country’s top civil servant, who is also Electricity Generation Company of Malawi (Egenco) board chairperson by virtue of his position, said the project is one of the keys to ensure achievement of the Malawi Government target to increase electricity generation capacity to 1 000MW by 2030.
Saidi, who visited the project site in Neno and Blantyre districts, said increased electricity generation will enable the government to implement large-scale development projects and improve service delivery as energy remains a foundational driver of economic transformation.
He said: “As a country, we need at least 1 000MW to unlock our development potential. We are investing in sectors such as mining, which require substantial and reliable energy for mineral processing. Projects like Mpatamanga are therefore central to achieving that goal.”
Mpatamanga Hydropower Limited general manager Antoine Gerboud said the project’s development phase is nearing completion with key milestones already achieved, including the construction of an access bridge linking Blantyre and Neno at the project site.
He also said the project has made progress in resettlement efforts, with 45 households identified for relocation having been compensated by constructing them new houses.
“The construction work will take us at least 54 months and after that, we will have up to 30 years of operation,” said Gerboud.
He said the construction phase which will involve building a main dam and a regulating dam, is projected to create approximately 2 500 jobs for Malawians.
Egenco chief executive officer William Liabunya said the project is on track, with expectations that by the end of 2026, key contractors for the main construction works will be identified following financial closure.
The World Bank last year approved a $350 million grant for the project which is expected to significantly boost Malawi’s electricity generation capacity and contribute to energy security.
Currently, Egenco has a total installed generation capacity of 444.67MW, with 390.15MW from hydro power plants, 53.22MW from thermal power plants and 1.3MW from solar power plants.
Mpatamanga project is being implemented under a public private partnership model with Egenco holding 30 percent shareholding on behalf of the Malawi Government.
Mpatamanga Hydro Power Limited was established in 2022 to develop, finance, construct, own and operate the hydropower project. The other partners include the World Bank’s private sector financing arm International Finance Corporation (IFC), Scatec ASA, and EDF International.
The company is currently owned by SN Malawi BV (owned by Scatec ASA and its partners British International Investment (BII) and Norfund), and EDF International (owned by EDF SA) each owning 50 percent. The planned ownership structure for the company is EDF 27.5 percent and Scatec and its venture partners 27.5 percent, Egenco 30 percent and IFC 15 percent.
