Times Of Swaziland: ‘COMMERCIAL’ ELECTRICITY  CONSUMPTION UP 30%

‘COMMERCIAL’ ELECTRICITY  CONSUMPTION UP 30%
================================================================================
BY ASHMOND NZIMA on 29/12/2020 23:30:00


MBABANE - Total electricity consumption, measured in volume unit sales grew by
2.6 per cent to 1 131.3 gigawatt hours (GWh) in the 2019/20 financial year
It was recorded at 1 102.8 GWh in the previous year.
This is as per the 2019/20 Annual Economic Review Report which provides the
broader economic context on the global and domestic economy.
increased
According to the report recently released by the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE),
electricity consumption by the ‘domestic’ and ‘commercial’ categories
increased by 4.1 and 30.2 per cent, respectively.
“Sales to the ‘irrigation power and bulk’ category declined by 3.7 per
cent,” reads the report.
Meanwhile, the Eswatini Electricity Company (EEC) is said to be continuing to
push for the implementation of the Maguga hydro expansion project earmarked to
contribute an extra 10 Megawatt (MW)  to the grid.
adjacent
This project, worth approximately E75 million, involves the addition of
generating equipment on the existing plant and constructing a new one in
adjacent areas.
Other projects in the pipeline include the Lavumisa Solar PV 10MW Power Station
worth about E200 million and the Lubhuku coal thermal power station remains in
the electricity company’s medium to long-term plans.
“Successful implementation of all these prospective projects would ensure that
the production capacity of the country improves, thus reducing the dependency on
imports from South Africa,” highlighted the report.
The total number of EEC customers, on the other hand, rose to 235 103 at the end
of 2019/20 from 221 337 in 2018/19.
Domestic and commercial customers grew by 6.2 per cent and 6.3 per cent,
respectively. Customers from the ‘irrigation power and bulk’ category fell
by 28.2 per cent.
combination
The combination of increased demand and fall in local generation is said to have
resulted in a higher demand for imported power in 2019/20. Electricity imports
(from neighbouring South Africa and Mozambique) grew by approximately 9.8 per
cent to record 1 043.8 GWh in 2019/20 compared to 950.6 GWh in 2018/19.