Blantyre Water Board (BWB) has signed a contract with an Indian firm, Tata Consulting Engineers, to conduct a feasibility study to develop a 30 megawatts (MW) solar power plant at Walker’s Ferry at Nkula.
Speaking on Saturday at BWB head office during the signing ceremony, the board’s chief executive officer Robert Hanjahanja said they plan to get off the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) grid to reduce its financial burden and have a more reliable source of power.
He said: “We usually generate about 1.9 billion in a month in terms of revenue and about 80 percent of that goes to Escom. “We also want to replicate similar systems where we pump water in the city.”
Tata Consulting Engineers general manager Rajeev Menon assured BWB of quality work. “This is a great initiative and we expect to complete the work within the specified period. The plant will be good enough to run even during winter or rainy season,” he said.
Ministry of Finance acting director of debt and aid Nations Msowoya said the ministry has already secured funding for the project and do not expect any delays.
“The Government of Malawi has already obtained financial resources form the government of India and we have already processed them through Parliament,” he said.
Currently, the board’s production capacity is at 121 000m cubic per day. The K72 billion project is expected to be completed in the next 18 to 24 months.
Source: The Nation_ Monday, June 13, 2022_ by Precious Kumbani