THE supply of power in the country will begin to improve by October 20, this year, as the anticipated gas pressure of 55 bars enabling Kinyerezi gas plant to be switched on has been attained, said the Managing Director of Tanzania Electric Supply Company, Eng Felichesmi Mramba.
"Because the gas plant is new, it thus requires high gas pressure which was achieved on September 29, 2015, to allow cleaning of the pipes to resume," said Eng Mramba while briefing journalists on the current electricity problems in the country.
The Supervising Consultant has suggested that for the two gas plants in Kinyerenzi to be switched on, the gas pressure of 55 bars was inevitable pending cleaning of the pipes for gas samples to be sent to General Electric the manufacturer of the plant for verification before takeoff.
"Tanesco anticipates that by October 14, two plants will start operating and the last two are in progress and their completion will mean a reliable power supply of about 305 megawatts in the country," noted the MD.
He, however, assured members of the public that the current power outages were not in any way affiliated to politics and revealed that the company's daily earnings have dropped from 2.4bn/- to 500m/- since mid August to date, this year.
"It is important that people knew Tanesco was not 100 per cent in control of all the power plants and the gas systems in the country. What we have been communicating to our customers is what we received from the companies," he pointed out.
Mr Mramba confirmed that the country was facing water deficit in all the hydropower production plants in the country which used to produce 561 megawatts which has dropped to the current 105 megawatts, equivalent to 18 per cent.
"Mtera dam was formerly producing 80 megawatts but currently none, Kidatu produced 204 megawatts but now 27 megawatts, Kihansi 180 megawatts but at present 51.5 megawatts and New Pangani Falls 68 megawatts which has reduced to 17 megawatts," he affirmed.
Others are Hale which previously had 21 megawatts but currently produces 4 megawatts and Nyumba ya Mungu in the past produced 8 megawatts but now 5.5 megawatts.
Currently, Pan African Company is refurbishing its natural gas wells which had been previously producing 340 megawatts and has dropped to 260 megawatts and two wells have been exhausted therefore causing shortage of gas.
He further pointed that power plants using oil with the capacity of producing 230 megawatts presently produces 190 megawatts only.
The Managing Director is calling upon members of the public to bear with the current power outages while the problem is being worked on and ordered all the Zone Managers to issue reliable power cuts schedules.
