SADC power project on course
6 September 2012
The Botswana Gazette - Five investors have expressed interest in the development of the $223 million power transmission inter-connector project to link Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana and Namibia (ZiZaBoNa).
According to a statement issued by SADC Secretariat Water Division and Infrastructure Service Directorate communications officer Barbara Lopi, the potential investors revealed their interest in the project at a recent investors’ roundtable held in Swakopmund, Namibia recently.
The project which is being promoted as part of SADC regional integration has the capacity to increase power trading among participating utilities in addition to providing an alternative route and assist decongest the existing central transmission corridor that currently passes through Zimbabwe.
Total funding required is $223 million, involving $67 million equity and $156 million debt financing. The five investors that would participate in this mammoth inter-country project and have pledged over $160 million encompass the African Development Bank (AfDB), Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), European Investment Bank (EIB), French Development Agency and Stanbic Botswana.
Category: Energy