Moz could help SA’s energy crisis

THE present energy crisis in South Africa presents an important boon for Mozambique’s energy sector, private media reported yesterday.

Pascoal Bacela, Mozambique’s national director for energy, told the independent weekly O Pais in a report published on its online edition yesterday, that Mozambique needed to invest more in the energy sector to meet the challenge. He said the vast energy resources in Mozambique presented it with the opportunity to help the energy crisis affecting the southern African region.South Africa is currently embroiled in an energy crisis, which has sparked off sporadic power cuts under the energy utility Eskom’s load shedding programme.The power cuts have paralysed almost all major sectors of the country resulting in millions of rands in lost income.Zimbabwe, Swaziland are also among southern African countries, which are battling with energy crises, and they are also looking to Mozambique for beef ups.Mozambique’s energy potential is mainly on the Zambezi River, the vast natural gas fields and the coalfields in the northern province of Tete.Mozambique only consumes 250 megawatts of the 2075 megawatts produced from the Cahora Bassa hydroelectric dam on the Zambezi River.The rest of the electrical energy is sold to Malawi, South Africa and Zimbabwe.The construction of a second major hydroelectric dam seven kilometres downstream on the Zambezi River at Mepanda Nkua is at advanced stages.The new dam – construction of which is expected to begin in 2009 and end in 2013 – will generate 1500 megawatts which is valued at more than Euros 1,1 million.The country’s coalfields, which were recently opened in the northwestern province of Tete, are set to export most of its products.The bulk of the gas produced in the Inhambane province is exported to South Africa under an agreement with that country’s petrochemical giant Sasol.SapaHe said the vast energy resources in Mozambique presented it with the opportunity to help the energy crisis affecting the southern African region.South Africa is currently embroiled in an energy crisis, which has sparked off sporadic power cuts under the energy utility Eskom’s load shedding programme.The power cuts have paralysed almost all major sectors of the country resulting in millions of rands in lost income.Zimbabwe, Swaziland are also among southern African countries, which are battling with energy crises, and they are also looking to Mozambique for beef ups.Mozambique’s energy potential is mainly on the Zambezi River, the vast natural gas fields and the coalfields in the northern province of Tete.Mozambique only consumes 250 megawatts of the 2075 megawatts produced from the Cahora Bassa hydroelectric dam on the Zambezi River.The rest of the electrical energy is sold to Malawi, South Africa and Zimbabwe.The construction of a second major hydroelectric dam seven kilometres downstream on the Zambezi River at Mepanda Nkua is at advanced stages.The new dam – construction of which is expected to begin in 2009 and end in 2013 – will generate 1500 megawatts which is valued at more than Euros 1,1 million.The country’s coalfields, which were recently opened in the northwestern province of Tete, are set to export most of its products.The bulk of the gas produced in the Inhambane province is exported to South Africa under an agreement with that country’s petrochemical giant Sasol.Sapa