Escom gives Blantyre Water Board 14 days to pay K1.6bn or face blackout

Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) has threatened to disconnect power to Blantyre Water Board (BWB) over an unpaid K1.6 billion commitment.

In a letter dated 1 September 2026, ESCOM chief executive Eng. William Kaipa told BWB it had paid only K400 million of the K2 billion it had committed to settle for August, leaving a shortfall of K1.6 billion.

ESCOM has given BWB 14 days to settle the outstanding amount. It warned that electricity to the water board’s head office would be disconnected on 14 September if payment was not made.

ESCOM said it had continued meeting financial obligations on BWB’s behalf, including taxes, payments to independent power producers and various levies.

Kaipa said such obligations constituted more than 60 percent of the electricity bill.

ESCOM said the situation had deprived it of resources needed to carry out its mandate.

The letter was addressed to the BWB chief executive officer and copied to the director of finance.

The development comes as BWB faces a separate leadership dispute, with competing interests reported to be contesting control and influence within the institution.

Political speculation has also emerged around the tensions, linking them to influence over World Bank-supported programmes at BWB ahead of the 2030 elections.

No independent evidence has been presented to establish that World Bank funds are being diverted, or that the leadership dispute is being driven by access to such funds.

ESCOM’s deadline for payment falls on 14 September.