Zanzibar Spared Blackout Despite President John Magufuli Order
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Tags: Environment and Energy minister Salama Aboud Talib, Minister for Energy and Minerals Sospeter Muhongo, President John Magufuli, Tanesco, Zanzibar, Zanzibar Electricity Corporation, Zanzibar government
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Tanzania has given Zanzibar up to the end of the month to settle Tsh121 billion ($57 million) in power bills that have accumulated over the years or be plunged into darkness.
President John Magufuli ordered last week that the semi-autonomous archipelago be unplugged from the national grid run by Tanesco over the debt. However, talks between the two government’s energy officials led to the reprieve from immediate disconnection.
The talks were led by Tanzania’s Minister for Energy and Minerals Sospeter Muhongo and Zanzibar’s Lands, Environment and Energy minister Salama Aboud Talib.
“The talks I had with the Prof Muhongo were very cordial and fruitful. Our aim was to find ways in which the Zanzibar Electricity Corporation (Zeco) could settle the bill,” said Ms Talib without elaborating.
Payment plan
A team of senior Zanzibar government officials met this week to chart out the possible means to settle the huge debt, and were given till March 30 to table their proposals to the Isles government.
Technocrats in the ministries will now prepare a payment plan.
Tanesco supplies about 60 megawatts of electricity to Zanzibar for Tsh3.4 billion ($1.5 million) each month. The utility had threatened to cut off power to the Isles since 2014 but Zeco has been disputing the billing.
Last October, Tanzania’s parliamentary Public Accounts Committee raised concern over the alarming debt owed to Tanesco by Zanzibar. In a probe on the matter, it emerged that there was a dispute over the electricity tariffs charged on Zeco visa vis those levied on mainland customers.
