Electricity uptake by mining firms in Zambia to continue declining

Electricity uptake by mining firms in Zambia is expected to continue declining this year as the country continues facing a power deficit, a company that supplies power to the mines said on Tuesday.

The Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC) Plc said it anticipates an average reduction in power uptake by the mines of between 10 to 15 percent this year due to the power deficit.

In its audited results for the year ended Dec. 31, 2015, the company which buys bulk electricity from the state-run Zesco Limited and supplies it to the mines, said year-on-year energy sales to its customers declined by about three percent reducing from 4,208 GWh in 2014 to 4,092 GWh in 2015.

According to the statement, the power generation constraints which started in 2015 affected the company's power supply to mines as the power utility reduced its electricity supply to 70 percent.

This forced the company to enter into power supply agreements with other utilities in the region in order to meet the shortfall.

"As this power came at a higher price than the locally sourced power, our customers had a choice as to how much of this power they wished to access. To close the 30 percent supply gap, most of the customers employed a combination of internal operational efficiency improvements," the statement said.

Zambia is currently facing a power deficit cause by low water levels in its reservoirs. Endit