PML upbeat on low cost consumer electricity
Malawians should expect to enjoy affordable electricity in five years courtesy to interventions and private sector-led investments being facilitated by the country’s single electricity buyer, Power Market Limited (PML).
PML director of marketing and corporate services Villant Jana, while acknowledging that most power generation projects take time to develop and are capital intensive, said in a written response that the actual benefit may only be feasible between three to five years from now.
She said: “In its power procurement plan, PML is focusing on procuring various power generation technologies from hydropower generation spread across the country, which means reducing dependence on the Shire River, gas power generation, wind, solar and geothermal power generation, among others.
“The interventions will ensure a quality and dependable power supply that can propel the economy and support the growth of the manufacturing and mining industries.”
Consumers Association of Malawi executive director John Kapito observed that Malawi is already one of the countries with the highest electricity tarrifs in the region, adding that investors look at a number of factors before they invest, one of them being the capacity of consumers to purchase and use electricity.
He said: “No wonder what we are getting are small investments producing 50 megawatts which is a drop compared to the expectations of the investors. This is a small market and it will take us ages to get the right investments for power generation.
“PML is not an investor and what they do is buy electricity from the producers and they are also a distortion on the current high tarrif increases because the consumer will have to pay a huge cost for an institution that does not add value to the accessibility and cost of electricity.”
Malawi Government data show that as of 2020, Escom sold 1 576 gigawatts (GWh) of electricity, a 6.3 percent rise from the previous year’s 1 477 GWh.
The rise followed an increas in the customer base by 6.13 percentage points from 413 816 to 439 187.
In March 2021, Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority approved a 10.62 percent electricity tariff increase, comprising 4.9 percent revenue recouping adjustment due to non-implementation of a tariff increase that was approved in February 2020 and 5.72 percent being the Automatic Tariff Adjustment Formula outcome. The 10.62 percent tariff adjustment effected in February 2020 moved the average tariff from K94.43 per kWh to K104.46 per kWh and was implemented with effect from March 30 2021.
