Blackouts get critical in Malawi capital city: Cama slams Escom
Capital City, Lilongwe is experiencing an unprecedented power cuts, load-shedding going for a day and half in most instances, crippling the economy and negatively affecting the every day life of residents.
In some instances, when the power returns, it comes with force damaging some household property as most people live fridges, laptops and others on in anticipation when power returns at night, it would
recharge the electronic facilities.
Steve Kaira, station manager for Nkula B this week said the load-shedding would be minimised after Egenco worked on all damaged machines.
“By the end of business on Monday, 80 per cent of the power would return and by Tuesday, 100 per cent of the power would return,” he said.
However, this was not the case in Lilongwe.
He explained that Egenco was working on a broken valve during the Easter holiday which rendered most areas in the dark for long hours.
“We were also cleaning the tunnels, we have now maintained most of the machines and power should now be restored,” said Kaira.
Consumers Association of Malawi (Cama) has since taken a swipe at Electricity Generation Company (Egenco) and Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) for extended load shedding despite the provision of diesel generators.
Cama executive director John Kapito said the country is sailing through troubled waters despite having diesel generators which were expected to reduce load shedding hours to a maximum of six hours per day.
“Instead of moving to a better level we are going backwards, and this is coming at a time when consumers have accepted high electricity tariffs which Mera [Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority] approved,” he said.
WITHOUT BUSHIRI MALAWIANS FORGET ABOUT PROGRESS
ALL THESE ARE CROOKS !!
OPEN YOUR EYES !!
What else can we expect from a failed Gov, by the way are the gensets working??? It was all over on MBC
Pamene a president amakayatsa kma pano they are not telling us how they are helping!
I still don’t understand why Malawians keep hoping for miracles from Egenco and Escom. The bottom line is that both Egenco and Escom have failed and they don’t know how to get Malawi out of the situation they find themselves in. Their masters (the so called caring politicians) have failed them and so have they. Change of guard to political and parastatal level is the only solution. New vision and new strategies required and there plenty around.
The future of Malawi electricity is on Kammwamba coal fired project otherwise this hydro power generation on Shire river is unreliable and will be getting worse each and every year. The growing population is the main contributing factor. Increased use of Lake Malawi and its tributary waters for both domestic, industrial and irrigation use is continuously reducing the lake levels and surely within coming 100 years Shire river will dry up. Govt would have encouraged all major irrigation schemes to be in lower shire to save Lake Malawi dwindling levels.
Egenco at its best trying to egencolizing Malawians.
” … 100 per cent of the power would return,” he said. However, this was not the case in Lilongwe.”
Owen Khamula & Nyasa Times: Why not contact Escom to ask why there are prolonged blackouts in Lilongwe? Perhaps Escom is working on transformers or power lines as part of the MCC (or whatever) project. That is to say, Egengo may be making the power, but Escom is failing to deliver it.
chi egenco ndi chi escom cha manyi
Kodi inu a DPP tanenani chikuchitika ndi chiyani, tikuvutika ife, our small businesses completely down now. You cheated Malawians, raising electricity tariffs saying with the gensets in, blackouts will be history, a Mutharika tanenani mau…….. you were very vocal — what do you tell us?
same old story!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is coming at a time when Malawi is holding 2019 tripartite elections. Mr Kapito you can not swipe at EGENCO and ESCOM swipe on the Policy makers your DPP government period. They are doing shithole in this country sleeping on the job. What is the use gen sets just stealing tax payers money by the end of this exercise 2019 some will be billionaires in this same country. To hell dpp 2019.