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- Feb 11, 2006
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EXPERTS from Norway are in the country to start repairing the 60MW turbine that broke down at Kihansi hydropower plant on September 7.
The Deputy Minister for Energy and Minerals, Adam Malima, who paid a visit to the power plant together with Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) power generation manager Mr Stephen Mabada, said the two experts from Norway arrived in the country on Tuesday.
The two experts from Norplan A. S, in Norway which initially commissioned three turbines at the hydropower plant that started producing power in 1999 will work together with TANESCO experts to ascertain the problem detected earlier as the correct one.
The inspection of the turbine will take one week, and afterwards repairs of the turbine will start immediately. They are expected to complete mid December this year, Mr Malima said.
Kihansi has three turbines with the capacity of producing 180MW but with one of the turbines down and with the low level of water, only 60 MW is being produced. Kihansi contributes 25 per cent of electricity to the national grid. Deputy Minister Malima said within 18 months from now there would be an increase of 255MW in the whole country due to increased electricity production.
TANESCO will purchase two machines, one to produce 60MW will be taken to Nyakato, Mwanza and the other 100MW will be placed in Dar es Salaam.
Tegeta plant is expected to start producing 45MW between November and December, Singida will start generating electricity from wind mill of about 50MW, Mr Malima explained.
Meanwhile, the parliamentary committee on energy and minerals yesterday asked the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) to work out an arrangement that would see rural power tariffs lower than those in urban areas.
The committee also asked the agency to inculcate the LUKU system into their rural projects to make both supply and bill collection equally easier. The committee chairman, Mr William Shelukindo, said in Dar es Salaam yesterday the committee had also raised the issue of the scarcity of solar power equipment and spares.
REA is charged with spearheading rural power projects through grid extension, mini-grid and stand-alone solar home systems. Its Director, Mr Rutengano Mwakaesa, said after the meeting with the committee that they intended to finish all the 48 projects worth 92bn/- before November next year. They started in July this year.
He said the major challenge so far was the limitation of resources as there were no private investors in the rural electrification programme currently pegged at 92bn/-. Mr Shelukindo said that since the effecting of REA, the rural Tanesco projects were being implemented at a faster rate, which he noted, would stimulate the firm to start making profits.
He gave an assurance that the ongoing power rationing would not affect the ongoing rural projects, as they have not yet been fed into the national grid.
Source: Daily News
The Deputy Minister for Energy and Minerals, Adam Malima, who paid a visit to the power plant together with Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) power generation manager Mr Stephen Mabada, said the two experts from Norway arrived in the country on Tuesday.
The two experts from Norplan A. S, in Norway which initially commissioned three turbines at the hydropower plant that started producing power in 1999 will work together with TANESCO experts to ascertain the problem detected earlier as the correct one.
The inspection of the turbine will take one week, and afterwards repairs of the turbine will start immediately. They are expected to complete mid December this year, Mr Malima said.
Kihansi has three turbines with the capacity of producing 180MW but with one of the turbines down and with the low level of water, only 60 MW is being produced. Kihansi contributes 25 per cent of electricity to the national grid. Deputy Minister Malima said within 18 months from now there would be an increase of 255MW in the whole country due to increased electricity production.
TANESCO will purchase two machines, one to produce 60MW will be taken to Nyakato, Mwanza and the other 100MW will be placed in Dar es Salaam.
Tegeta plant is expected to start producing 45MW between November and December, Singida will start generating electricity from wind mill of about 50MW, Mr Malima explained.
Meanwhile, the parliamentary committee on energy and minerals yesterday asked the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) to work out an arrangement that would see rural power tariffs lower than those in urban areas.
The committee also asked the agency to inculcate the LUKU system into their rural projects to make both supply and bill collection equally easier. The committee chairman, Mr William Shelukindo, said in Dar es Salaam yesterday the committee had also raised the issue of the scarcity of solar power equipment and spares.
REA is charged with spearheading rural power projects through grid extension, mini-grid and stand-alone solar home systems. Its Director, Mr Rutengano Mwakaesa, said after the meeting with the committee that they intended to finish all the 48 projects worth 92bn/- before November next year. They started in July this year.
He said the major challenge so far was the limitation of resources as there were no private investors in the rural electrification programme currently pegged at 92bn/-. Mr Shelukindo said that since the effecting of REA, the rural Tanesco projects were being implemented at a faster rate, which he noted, would stimulate the firm to start making profits.
He gave an assurance that the ongoing power rationing would not affect the ongoing rural projects, as they have not yet been fed into the national grid.
Source: Daily News
