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[Panafrican News Agency]
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Zimbabwe Negotiates Share Deal In Mozambique's Cahora Bassa Dam
May 22, 1998
HARARE, Zimbabwe (PANA) - Negotiations with the Mozambican government for
Zimbabwe to acquire a stake in the Cahora Bassa hydro electricity power
station have reached an advanced stage, Zimbabwe's transport and energy
minister, Enos Chikowore, has said.
He told the country's news agency, ZIANA, that negotiations for a stake in
the station were expected to be finalised in June at a meeting in Maputo.
Zimbabwe is understood to be seeking up to 30 percent stake in the station
but Chikowore refused to say how much the Mozambican government had agreed
to offer Zimbabwe.
"I'm meeting the Mozambican minister of minerals and energy next month to
discuss the issue of Zimbabwe acquiring shares in the power station," he
said. "Zimbabwe is really making headway in its attempt to acquire some
shareholding."
The country is seeking a stake in the power station to boost its power
sources at a time its internal power generating capacity is largely lagging
behind. It currently imports 40 percent of its power
needs with 400 mw of power from Cahora Bassa through the Songo-Bindura- Dema
420 kv interconnector.
Negotiations for the deal are being done through Mozambique's power utility,
Electricite de Mozambique and Hidroelectrica de Cahora Bassa, a partial
owner of the power station.
Eighty-two percent of the power station is owned by the Portuguese
government while 18 percent is owned by the Mozambican government.
The South African power utility, Eskom, is also understood to be interested
in securing a substantial share of the power plant.
The Cahora Bassa dam is one of the largest hydro-electric stations in
sub-Saharan Africa. The dam is capable of supplying Zimbabwe with its entire
electricity needs with its 2,000 megawatts capacity.
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and Editor, World Rivers Review
International Rivers Network
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Tel. (510) 848 1155 Fax (510) 848 1008
http://www.irn.org
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