A GROUP of companies, AGRAWAL, from GOA State, India, plans to build a ONE Hundred Mega Watt capacity solar panel manufacturing facility in Zambia.
Group Chairman KRISHNAKUMAR AGRAWAL says the project would cost FIVE Million US Dollars private capital investment.
He says the exercise might take SIX months if the company completes the registration and legal process as well as getting satisfaction with the market demand.
Mr. AGRAWAL says the project would result in jobs creation and skills transfer to the Zambian populace especially youths, for the company founded in 1950, currently running a SIXTY mega watt solar panel manufacturing facility in GOA.
He says the company has special skills in executing OFF- grid and ON- grid projects for open access market while the rest of the solar energy is sold to government in addition to large scale solar pumps.
This came to light when Zambia’s High Commissioner to India JUDITH KAPIJIMPANGA toured the solar manufacturing company in the Indian State of GOA, TWO Thousand kilometres away from the Indian Capital, NEW DELHI.
And Mrs. KAPIJIMPANGA says GOA State has determined investors such as Mr. NARAYAN BANDEKAR who built a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant at the Lusaka South Multi Facility -MFEZ and SAFAL Managing Director PANKAJ JAIN, running a manganese factory in SERENJE.
She says Zambia has EIGHT months of continuous sunshine, progressive banking system and a strong legal framework that supports private sector investment.
Mrs. KAPIJIMPANGA says the Mission recorded three companies in the first quarter of the year 2019 that started actualising investment in Zambia among them PRASAD Seeds, VAGMI Cottons and OM Rollers and Smelters with combined investment worth over ONE Hundred Million US Dollars.
She says more investment will increase total investment from India above the current EIGHT Billion US Dollars.
This is contained in a statement released by First Secretary Press and Tourism at the Zambian Mission in India, BANGWE NAVILEY.
My Swiss wife elisa tried to bring this to rural parts of eastern province using her own money. However she faced resistance from pf thugs who demanded money to let her access rural villages. So we deciced to instead help our own relatives in zambia. My Swiss wife thinks that zambia will soon be declared bankrupt. I m lucky to have investments abroad too
Lusaka Times in the interest of this site please ban this chap who is actually spamming this site or some of us will actually leave.
We don’t need to read what it says. Please put a ban for all.
Just ignore him. Hes a comedian . This guy has never even seen an air ticket in his life time.
People that blog from abroad you can easily tell from content
No thank you. unless its in joint partnership with a zambian firm. otherwise, let them go somewhere else
It’s political please tell me what content people abroad put in their comments? Are you blind to not see my flag? There is nothing special about being in england. I am only here due to my kids education. Otherwise I would move back any day. Most of my houses and investment are in Zambia and other African countries. Your jealousy will kill you. Satana imwe
Last time it was Agrawal wanting to invest in the pharmaceutical industry in Zambia. Now it’s Agrawal wishing to invest in Solar. Let’s not forget Agrawal of K.C.M, who probably told his relatives go to Zambia, they are so Sleepy & docile, you can pull wool over their eyes, & rip them in broad daylight.
ZAMBIANS, BEWARE OF THE AGRAWAL CURSE!!
Indians are slippery chaps…look at this Group’s portfolio of companies and I see construction companies specializing in residential homes.
Really laughable…you think an Indian with their racist cast system would leave his village to come and open a manufacturing company in black Africa maybe an assembly company supporting the main company in India.
This is time to liberate the Zambians for crying out loud. Let households have solar panels and work out a scheme that will feed into the grid so the distributor can then credit the overproducers while charging those who require this power. Napapata mwa wantu. Just for once let’s do the right thing.
Is this an assembly plant or a company that installs panels…I dont see any manufacturer here.
@4 Jay Jay ,that is my question too,the reporting is very confusing.One should even be excused to think that these guys are just coming to install a solar power plant to generate electricity coz a manufacturing firm cannot be described in the amount of electricity it can generate like ” A 100 Megawatts plant..” – just how? We expected to hear things like ” the firm will be producing X square metres of solar panels per year..,worth Y million $ ” NOT this confused reporting we are seeing here!!
Its these silly ambassadors rushing to their Press Secretaries to print rubbish they dont even understand…trying show that they are working!!
I have been calling for GRZ to increase 100% the duty on solar products and give tax breaks to for the local manufacturing of solar products …….the tax breaks should be for facilitating low priced solar products to help every household and employ as many Zambians as possible
Even if you did that Spaka…there are loop holes for a foreign investor like 5 year tax breaks and our local entrepreneurs only want to be middlemen they never want to cross bridge and dont get me started with the banks and the cost of borrowing/ unpredictable interest rates.
The name agarwals is not liked by Zambians. Tell any Indian investors wanting to invest in zambia must change
His name to Banda,phiri and ngulube. Let
It be a condition to apply for investment.
Too many stories from these High commissioners of probable investments coming to Zambia ???????? especially uyu Zambian Ambassador waku Germany ???????? , but Zambia is still importing basic stuff. Please Can You Just Do It Like Nike Says ?
This one in India seems to be working , the rest are all on holiday , especially father frank Bwalya, is he still alive ???
Making noise in papers is not what diplomacy is about…this what happens when you place disc jockeys from newspapers like Anthony and Mwamba in Embassies.
That is JETS. Junior Education Technical Science in India
Bring Jews
They should also be exporting the same solars. ..lol
Ine nakana! Inform all those Koolies to stay away from our country Zambia otherwise; we’re all going to be laced with MPIRI-PIRI
” This came to light when Zambia’s High Commissioner to India JUDITH KAPIJIMPANGA toured the solar manufacturing company in the Indian State of GOA, TWO Thousand kilometres away from the Indian Capital, NEW DELHI.”
This High Commissioner needs to be quieted. She is inviting nonsensical companies. Could we for once activate who ever the sleepy ambassador is in Japan. It would benefit us to invite Japanese companies. Indian entities and their CEOs have never brought progress anywhere in Africa. Better, let Zambians start doing for themselves.
How complex is solar technology that it cannot be locally harnessed? I nootice there re quite many among us who feel this is something which can be done at sec school level. Where is Engineers association to provide guidance?
We can do it but not with this your PF government the would tax you to death they don’t know how to grow local business persons