The PPPC and the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining, is developing a 350-megawatt hydropower project (with 309 MW at the main dam and 41 MW at a secondary regulating dam) at Mpatamanga Gorge on the Shire River in southern Malawi.
The Mpatamanga hydropower project will do the following:
1. It will assist Government of Malawi to meet future power demand during both peak and off-peak periods, becoming the country’s main source of generation;
2. It will improve the performance of the existing power system due to its inclusion of a storage reservoir to support peaking operation.
3. It will also significantly reduce the sediment inflow into the Kapichira reservoir, increasing power generation at the plant and prolonging the lifetime of the reservoir.
The project is expected to be financed by a cocktail of funding forms including private sector debt and equity. Once construction is completed Escom will take the power made available by the project paying availability payment in return.