SOLAR POWER FOR LIKOMA AND CHIZUMULU ISLANDS

Solar has now become the main source of electricity for Likoma and Chizumulu islands following the commissioning of 1.3MW solar power plants for the islands by the Electricity Generation Company (Malawi) Limited (EGENCO) on Monday, 16 November 2020.

EGENCO’s Chief Executive Officer, William Liabunya, said this was according to the organization’s strategic plan.

“When we started as a company in 2017, we made it a strategic priority to have solar as the source of power here at Likoma.” Said Liabunya.

Solar has replaced diesel generators, which for decades have been the main source of power for the islands.

“The generators will now serve as back up”, according to Liabunya.

He further said this will help the company reduce costs as it was spending MK13 million every month on fuel to run the diesel generators.

In its 2018 – 2033 strategic plan, EGENCO plans to increase the country’s energy capacity from 367.37MW to 1,631.5MW. It also plans to diversify energy generation from being 95% hydro based to 76% hydro based.