Tanesco defends Nyerere dam construction, explains strategies to protect environment

Dar es Salaam. The Director General of Tanzania Electricity Supply Corporation (Tanesco), Maharage Chande, has said that in the implementation of the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Hydropower Dam project (JNHPP), the government considered and continues to follow up on the conditions of international environmental protection.

He made the statement Wednesday,  December 21,  during the Mwananchi-Twitter Space discussion organized by  Mwananchi Communications Limited Company regarding the economic importance of the dam.

Mr Chande said that globally, African countries contribute less to the destruction of the environment compared to developed countries, yet the former face more environmental effects.

"This is not the first time we are building dams; we have built Mtera, Kihansi Dam... and we have been doing environmental analysis and then making a plan to compensate for those effects, we considered that and the plans are being implemented. We report to international media all the time,” he noted.

Speaking at the debate, Mr Robert Muganzi, Senior Project Officer on Climate Change from the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) questioned the impact of cutting down trees without a return plan, giving an example of the cost of growing one mangrove per year that can absorb at least three kilograms of carbon dioxide.

Another point raised was about the possibility of a drop in electricity prices after the completion of the electricity dam in order to stimulate economic activities and increase relief for the people.

Speaking about electricity prices, Mr Chande said that the costs may decrease due to the calculations at the time of production, while explaining how the government has reduced electricity costs for citizens through various costs including poles and that it is lower when compared to other East African countries.

"The price of connecting electricity is on average 50 percent less than the actual cost of connecting people to electricity, therefore, when the dam starts, we will have another source that would reduce the costs further, however, it will depend on our calculations, let's not get our hopes up."

Mr Chande noted that, despite the government's efforts to increase electricity sources, including the dam that will start being filled with water tomorrow (JNHPP), there is still a long way to go to reach the electricity capable of supporting the industrial economy.

"This project will bring a lot of electricity to the grid, but this project is one of the stages of the long journey that we have as a country to produce, transport and distribute electricity," he said.

In his explanation, Mr Chande said research conducted in various magazines showed that in order to have enough electricity for industries and to develop the economy, every one million people need 1,000 megawatts.

"With a population of 60 million people, you will see that we need 60,000 megawatts of electricity but currently we have 1,500 megawatts, if we bring this 2,115 we will grow to approximately 3,800 megawatts. We have a lot of work to do to increase electricity production," said Mr Chande.

ENDs.

Tanesco defends Nyerere dam construction, explains strategies to protect environment

By Jacob Mosenda

Dar es Salaam. The Director General of Tanzania Electricity Supply Corporation (Tanesco), Maharage Chande, has said that in the implementation of the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Hydropower Dam project (JNHPP), the government considered and continues to follow up on the conditions of international environmental protection.

He made the statement Wednesday,  December 21,  during the Mwananchi-Twitter Space discussion organized by  Mwananchi Communications Limited Company regarding the economic importance of the dam.

Mr Chande said that globally, African countries contribute less to the destruction of the environment compared to developed countries, yet the former face more environmental effects.

"This is not the first time we are building dams; we have built Mtera, Kihansi Dam... and we have been doing environmental analysis and then making a plan to compensate for those effects, we considered that and the plans are being implemented. We report to international media all the time,” he noted.

Speaking at the debate, Mr Robert Muganzi, Senior Project Officer on Climate Change from the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) questioned the impact of cutting down trees without a return plan, giving an example of the cost of growing one mangrove per year that can absorb at least three kilograms of carbon dioxide.

Another point raised was about the possibility of a drop in electricity prices after the completion of the electricity dam in order to stimulate economic activities and increase relief for the people.

Speaking about electricity prices, Mr Chande said that the costs may decrease due to the calculations at the time of production, while explaining how the government has reduced electricity costs for citizens through various costs including poles and that it is lower when compared to other East African countries.

"The price of connecting electricity is on average 50 percent less than the actual cost of connecting people to electricity, therefore, when the dam starts, we will have another source that would reduce the costs further, however, it will depend on our calculations, let's not get our hopes up."

Mr Chande noted that, despite the government's efforts to increase electricity sources, including the dam that will start being filled with water tomorrow (JNHPP), there is still a long way to go to reach the electricity capable of supporting the industrial economy.

"This project will bring a lot of electricity to the grid, but this project is one of the stages of the long journey that we have as a country to produce, transport and distribute electricity," he said.

In his explanation, Mr Chande said research conducted in various magazines showed that in order to have enough electricity for industries and to develop the economy, every one million people need 1,000 megawatts.

"With a population of 60 million people, you will see that we need 60,000 megawatts of electricity but currently we have 1,500 megawatts, if we bring this 2,115 we will grow to approximately 3,800 megawatts. We have a lot of work to do to increase electricity production," said Mr Chande.