Umeme wa uhakika kurudi 2012 huko Zenj...

New power supply cable for Isles to be built in 2012

The Zanzibar government yesterday disclosed that the project to lay-down a new sub-marine cable for power supply to the Isles from Tanzania Mainland will be completed in 2012, after the US government reduced the project implementation timeframe.

This was said by Isles Minister for Water, Construction, Energy and Lands Mansour Yussuf Himid, when responding to questions by Members of the House of Representatives here yesterday.

He said previously, the project was set for completion by 2013, but the Isles government requested the US Government to reduce the timeframe due to power problems facing Zanzibar.

The minister told the House that the tendering process had been floated and would be opened on February 19, this year.

Himid said already various companies had applied for the implementation of the long-awaited project adding that the financier of the project, Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), would go through all processes of picking the winner from the bidding firms.

The new power supply route would have the capacity of 100MW from the Tanzania Electric Supply Company Limited (Tanesco), he said, adding that the cable would pass under the Indian Ocean from Kiromono Cape on the Mainland to Fumba in Zanzibar.

Zanzibar spends 1.2bn/- every month in power expenses from the Mainland, however Isles customers have been living without hydro-electric power supply since December last year, after a key electric device exploded at Fumba main power station.