Government Announces Reduction of Load Shedding to Eight Hours

The recently-appointed acting Minister of Energy, Douglas Syakalima, has announced that, following the completion of maintenance works at the Maamba Collieries powerplant, the staggered 12 hours of load shedding will be reduced to 8.

With the return of the 150 megawatt generator at Maamba Collieries Ltd., the power being supplied by the national grid is 1,910 megawatts, compared to the demand of 2,380 megawatts, Mr. Syakalima added.

Mr. Syakalima, who has been and continues to serve as Minister of Education, explained at a press briefing in Lusaka that the deficit of power has been lowered from 620 to 470 megawatts, resulting in a need for fewer hours of load shedding.

The acting Minister of Energy clarified that the load shedding format will be 4 hours of load shedding, 8 hours of power, 4 hours of load shedding, 8 hours of power. Customers will now have 16 hours of power per day, compared to the previous 12.

Mr. Syakalima was pleased to add that the Maamba Collieries maintenance work had been completed 3 days ahead of schedule, following intervention by President Hakainde Hichilema during his visit to the power plant on 8th January 2023.

The return of Maamba Collieries’ energy generation comes shortly after an announcement that President Hichilema had secured a funding agreement with the UAE for large-scale solar power plants, as part of efforts to diversify Zambia’s renewable energy options and protect against further issues with hydroelectric power.

“I wish to thank management at Maamba Collieries for the positive and prompt response to the President’s call,” he said.