US$163 million loan to link North-Western and parts of Western provinces to national grid

GOVERNMENT has signed a US$163 million loan agreement to link the
entire North-Western and parts of Western provinces to the national power grid, President Michael Sata has said.
The agreement, signed through Zesco, involves Nordea Bank AB of Sweden and Standard Bank of South Africa.
President Sata also said the current road works around the country would intensify following the signing of various consulting services and tender procurement in February, this year.
The President reaffirmed on his Facebook posting yesterday, Government’s determination to continue stimulating economic growth and
development to improve the lives of the people through infrastructure development.
“Today I wish to share with you Government’s efforts aimed at stimulating economic growth and development, thereby improving the lives of our people.
“As of February 2014, various consulting services for the detailed engineering design  and tender document preparation were being undertaken on road projects throughout the country,” he said.
Regarding the loan agreement to link power to North-Western and parts of Western provinces, Mr Sata said the project involved the construction of an extensive 132 kilovolt (kv) sub-transmission line totalling 840 kilometres.
Added to this was the establishment of a 132/33/11kv bulk supply sub-stations to facilitate electrification of public facilities, schools, rural health centres, Government institutions and chiefs’ palaces.
He said the transmission lines would link Mwinilunga, Kabompo, Mufumbwe, Mumbejhi, Chavuma, and Zambezi in North-Western Province as well as Lukulu District in Western Province.
“I am determined to see our people’s living standards improve through Government’s implementation of sound and practical development policies,’’ he said.
In the road sector, Mr Sata cited the upgrading of 225 kilometres of the Kasempa-Kaoma Road in Western and North-Western provinces and the upgrading of 327 kilometres of the Manyinga to Jimbe through Mwinilunga Road in North-Western Province whose contracts had been signed and services were currently ongoing.
The other was the upgrading of 121 kilometres of the Solwezi- Kipushi Road in North Western Province and the upgrading of 124 kilometres of the Lufwanyama to Kankolonkolo road on the Copperbelt and North-Western provinces.
Government was also upgrading the 284 kilometres stretch of the Mumbwa to Kasempa Road in Central and North-Western provinces whose tender had closed and was currently under evaluation.
The President said periodic maintenance works of the 169 kilometres of road T005 from Solwezi to Chingola on the Copperbelt and North-Western provinces would be accelerated after the rains stopped.