Commerce Minister Christopher Yaluma has encouraged Monze Town Council to ensure that the envisaged benefits of the geothermal energy project in the district materialise and improve the living standard of the people in the surrounding areas.
And Kalahari Geo Energy Director Dr Moses Banda says the company will start a pilot power generation at their Bweengwa project by 2020.
Speaking when he toured the stands at the on going Southern Province Tourism and Investment Exposition in Livingston, Yaluma said the geothermal project is a catalyst for development in the district.
He said the first-ever industrial park in the province will be located in the district and that the council needs to ensure that companies which can utilize the by-product from geothermal energy project can be engaged.
“Let’s make the project work. This is a good project for the community of Bweengwa and Monze as whole. As government we want to see this project materialize and we want you to make sure that it does. So Monze you have a lot of work to do and we are with you.”
And speaking during a Business Clinic on Energy, Dr Banda said the company will start its pilot power generation by 2020 which will lead to the setting up of the power generation plant in 2021.
He said the company has spent over $7million so far on the project and that it is expected to increase to $10million by the time it sets up it’s pilot generation plant.
He said his company has done all the necessary feasibility studies including safety assessment to ensure that all the security measures are in place and that it is satisfied with all the assessments.
He further said Kalahari Geo Energy will not go into the businesses associated to their project but that the industrial park which will be belt in the area will house different industries will give opportunities to different investors both local and international to invest in their area of interest.
Meanwhile Jack Deka the Socio-Economic Planner at Monze Town Council said the Bweengwa Industrial Park will open up the district to new business opportunities including local people.
He said the District is proud to be associated with the Geothermal Project because it will bring about an environment that will better the lives of the local people.
Kenya is like Zambia on its dependence on hydropower. In 2010, two-thirds of Kenya’s electricity came from its dams but will fall to 28% in 2024 because of geothermal energy. “We are too dependent on hydropower and this poses a real problem with the repetition of droughts,” says Cyrus Karingithi, Head of Resource Development at KenGen. Zambia may not have enough geothermal energy but we have abundant coal. Forget about people who tell you not to use coal (the West) when they themselves have developed because of coal for centuries and are the main culprit for climate change
What’s the point of spending new money developing industrial parks whn wht used to be the industrial belt in Livingstone is available? It’s land already surveyed, mapped and numbered and there’s plenty water nearby from the Zambezi. I’m not saying Monze doesn’t need industry. I’m only asking why we are leaving readily available land idle.