Temporal remedy at Kapichira plant

Construction of a temporary intake dam to restore power generation at Kapichira power station has commenced, about eight months after cyclone Gombe-induced floods destroyed it in January.

Kapichira Power Station remains non-operational for months now, leading to power woes.

But state-run energy generation entity, Energy Generation Company (Egenco), says the station, which feeds about 129 megawatts into the national grid, will be up and running by December.

Egenco deputy spokesperson Mervin Mchenga said the firm is constructing a temporary intake dam to resume operations at Kapichira power station by December.

“Initially, the intake dam was designed for power generation, but with new developments, we want to redesign it so that it also accommodates other activities such as irrigation,” Mchenga said.

A special committee of Parliament instituted to find out and make recommendations on the current power situation has been engaging players in the sector.

The committee inspected the work at Kapichira Power Station on Saturday before touring Nkula and Tedzani power stations on Sunday.

Co-chairperson of the joint committee Simplex Chithyola Banda said blame game among stakeholders remains a drawback in finding a remedy to the prevailing power challenges.

“We need to redefine the roles of all players in the sector so that each one knows their place and we know who to look up to for answers whenever there are concerns,” Banda said.

Recently, minister of energy Ibrahim Matola also held talks with officials from Egenco and Escom on the power situation but nothing has so far changed.