Tanzania: Lack of Investments Blamed for Recurring Power Shortages

The government and the Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) should invest heavily in power generation and distribution to permanently end recurring power shortages.

The Parliamentary Committee on Energy and Minerals expressed concerns yesterday that lack of investments in the power sector, for ten years spanning
1995 and 2005, has made the country to rely on emergency power plants which are costly to operate.

During the ten years, the power utility was lined up for privatization through the Parastatal Sector Reform Commission (PSRC) before the government decided otherwise, given the sensitivity of the power sector in the economy.

Since it was lined up to be privatized, the government did not invest in power generation and heavily depended on hydro-power which was unreliable due to prolonged droughts in some parts of the country. "Power problems will only be solved if the government and Tanesco make substantial investments in the energy sector," the committee Chairman Victor Mwambalaswa (Lupa-CCM), told journalists.

The parliamentary committee has been holed up in meetings for the past week with top officials in the Ministry of Energy and Minerals and subordinate institutions ahead of the marathon budget session of the National Assembly slated to start next week in the designated capital of Dodoma.

Mr Mwambalaswa noted that Tanesco has been making losses over years since it pays huge amounts of money to independent power producers (IPPs), a situation which could be avoided if it had its own generating plants.

"The power utility purchases a unit of power from IPPs at 32 cents and sells the same for 12 cents and thus embroiled in loss making business," Mr Mwambalaswa said. He was optimistic that if Tanesco had its own plants producing power through hydro, natural gas and wind it could produce electricity at just 8 cents per unit and eventually reduce the cost burden on its part and consumers as well.

Meanwhile, the parliamentary committee has urged the government to continue engaging involved parties in Mtwara and Lindi regions towards the construction of a mega pipeline to transport natural gas from the Southern regions to Dar es Salaam.

Construction of the pipeline has met some resistance from some sections of the public in the two regions, which Mr Mwambalaswa blamed on inadequate awareness since the project will also benefit residents in the regions.

Source: Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)