Escom set to miss Nov 30 deadline for Zambia power

State power distributor, Escom says it will miss the November 30 deadline to tap electricity from Zambia as the country now faces for over nine hours of power black outs every day.

Escom chief executive officer Alexious Chiwaya said despite the signing of the memorandum of understanding between Malawi and Zambia, there are several issues to sort out before Malawi taps the power from Chipata.

State power generators Egenco has since said electricity woes will not end until March next year.

However, Escom publicist Innocent Chitosi has played down the matter, saying Malawi will tap the 20 megawatts of power from Zambia by November 30.

“There are just a few technical issues we are sorting out , everything will be finalized by 30 November,” he said.

He said the testing of the line is currently underway and the commissioning of the line is set for November 30 as scheduled.

Speaker of the National Assembly Richard Msowoya was forced to adjourn parliamentary seating on Monday earlier after the power blackout hit the National Assembly.