Zambia's State power firm Zesco has $3.5bn debt - energy minister
Zambia's State power utility Zesco had a total debt of $3.5-billion as at September 2021, Energy Minister Peter Kapala told parliament on Friday.
He added that Zesco had made $400-million in loses between 2018 and 2019 owing to the depreciation of the local Kwacha currency.
Zesco reported its own debt as 30-billion kwacha ($1.78-billion in today's exchange rate) in 2019, raising the question of where the extra debt comes from and who holds it.
Earlier this month Zambian finance minister Situmbeko Musokotwane said Zambia's external public debt had grown uncontrollably over the past decade to almost $15-billion by June this year.
Of that, about $2-billion was parastatal debt.
President Hakainde Hichilema won a landslide election victory in August, beating incumbent Edgar Lungu, but his cabinet has since then been primarily pre-occupied with bringing the country's massive debts to light so that it can get IMF emergency relief.
Zambia plans to implement polices aimed at making its debt sustainable and talks with the International Monetary Fund -- a test case of Western multilateral efforts to make the debt of developing countries more transparent -- are moving quickly.
Kapala said disputed invocies and the inability of some mining companies to pay bills had resulted in these entities owing a combined $887-million as at August 2021.
Comments
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
At SMS group, we have made it our mission to create a carbon-neutral and sustainable metals industry.
VISIT SHOWROOM
Weir Minerals Europe, Middle East and Africa is a global supplier of excellent minerals solutions, including pumps, valves, hydrocyclones,...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
