World Bank (Washington, DC)
17 July 2007
Washington, D.C. — The World Bank Board of Directors today approved two International Development Association (IDA) credits totaling US$93 million for Malawi (US$48 million) and Mozambique (US$45 million) that will increase the availability and reliability of low cost, environmentally friendly electricity in the Southern Africa region, increasing industrial competitiveness and fostering economic growth.
As the second phase of the Southern African Power Market Program, the Mozambique-Malawi Transmission Interconnection Project will connect Malawi to the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP), allowing two-way energy trade between the two countries. This will ensure much-needed diversification in Malawi’s electricity supply and allow the export of any off-peak power surpluses. It will also provide Mozambique’s energy sector with a new revenue source.
“The interconnection will allow Malawi to reap the full benefits of membership of the Southern African Power Pool, both to import electricity when necessary – particularly if there’s a drought – and also to export any surplus electricity Malawi doesn’t use at night-time,” said Wendy Hughes, World Bank Senior energy Specialist and the project’s Task Team Leader.
For Mozambique, it will build approximately 135 km of 220 kV transmission line and extend the existing Matambo substation. On the Malawi side, approximately 75 km of 220 kV transmission line will be constructed and a new 220 kV substation will be installed.
The project will provide technical assistance, capacity building, training, and equipment necessary for the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) and Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) to strengthen and expand the networks to maximize the benefits of power trading. It will also help replace worn-out, inadequate, or obsolete equipment in order to remove critical bottlenecks in the networks that could impede the flow of traded electricity.
###
For more information on the World Bank’s work in sub-Saharan Africa, please visit: www.worldbank.org/afr
For more information on the World Bank’s work in Mozambique, please visit: www.worldbank.org/mozambique
For more information about World Bank’s activities in Malawi visit: www.worldbank.org/malawi
For more information about this project visit: http://web.worldbank.org/external/projects/main?pagePK=64283627&piPK=73230&theSi
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2007 World Bank. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
