ZESCO

Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation Limited

Company type	Public
Industry	Electricity Generation and Supply
Founded	1970
Headquarters	Lusaka, Zambia
Revenue	US$ 409 million (2017)
Number of employees	3,600 (2007)
Parent	State owned
Website	www.zesco.co.zm

ZESCO (acronym for Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation Limited) is a state-owned power company in Zambia. It is Zambia's largest power company producing about 80% of the electricity consumed in the country. ZESCO represents Zambia in the Southern African Power Pool.

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Operations

The company operates nine hydropower stations with a combined capacity of 2,217.5 MW and eight small thermal power plants with a combined capacity of 11.3 MW resulting in a total installed capacity of 2,228.8 MW.^[1]

The company also owns and operates power distribution and transmission lines of 9,975 km.

ZESCO has formed power purchase agreements with private companies that own power plants in Zambia. It purchases the power produced and feeds is directly into the national grid. GL Africa Energy provides the national grid through ZESCO with over 105 MW of power under this agreement.^[2]

ZESCO owns 40% shares in EL Sewedy Electric Zambia Limited.^[3]

In June 2022, ZESCO signed a 13-year Bulk Supply Agreement (BSA) with Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC) Plc. The power supply limit under the BSA was set at 380MW. ZESCO projects that they will earn an estimated US$150.0 million per annum from the agreement. These earnings are expected to translate into an estimated US$2.0 billion over the lifetime of the BSA.^[4]

In July 2022, at the 94th Agricultural and Commercial Show in Lusaka, the managing director of the National Utility ZESCO, Victor Mapani announced that the company plans to deploy Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations across the country in an effort to accelerate and promote the transition to EVs and enhance carbon emission reduction.^[5]

Power stations

Kafue Gorge Lower, 750 MW
Kafue Gorge Upper, 990 MW
Kariba North Bank, 720 MW
Kariba North Bank Extension, 360 MW
Victoria Falls, 108 MW
Itezhi-Tezhi Dam, 120 MW
Maamba Collieries Thermal Power Station, 300 MW

Limitations

The national grid in Zambia only extends to some parts of the country. For example, it ends 380 kilometres (240 mi) from the Ikelenge area around Kalene Hill in the extreme northwest, and as of 2008, ZESCO had no plans to provide power to this remote area. In response, some small-scale private operations have been established such as the Zengamina 700 KW hydroelectric generator.^[6] The Energy Regulation Board is encouraging private investment in hydroelectric power generation in view of the power deficit.^[7]

References

"ZESCO to increase electricity tariffs with effect from 1st July 2014".

Notes

^ Energy Sector Report 2014 (PDF) (Report). Energy Regulation Board, Zambia. 2015.
^ Kangali, Chatula (29 April 2016). "Zambia: Ndola Energy Project to Expand". The Times of Zambia (Ndola). Retrieved 7 July 2017.
^ zambiadispatch (27 April 2022). "zesco-receives-2m-dividend-from-el-sewedy-electric". zambiadispatch.com. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
^ daily-mail (11 July 2022). "zesco-to-earn-2bn-from-cec-deal". daily-mail.co.zm. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
^ zambianobserver (30 July 2022). "zesco-to-deploy-ev-charging-stations-in-many-towns-mapani". zambianobserver.com. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
^ "Zengamina Hydro Project". North West Zambia Development Trust. Retrieved 16 December 2011.
^ "ERB Approves Zengamina Tariffs" (PDF). The Energy Regulator (SECOND ed.). 2008. Retrieved 16 December 2011.