Dundo - At least 17 of the 34 planned megawatts of electricity is being produced by Luachimo hydroelectric dam located in the eastern Lunda Norte province, the director of rehabilitation and expansion project of the infrastructure said on Friday.
Joaquim Garcia confirmed this on the sidelines of the visit of minister of Energy and Water, João Baptista Borges, to the sector's projects in the region.
He said that the 17 megawatts are ensuring the supply of energy to the municipality of Chitato.
The manager put at 97 percent the execution of works of the project, whose completion of the installation of its maximum capacity-34 megawatts, is scheduled for the third quarter of this year.
The rehabilitation and expansion works of the Luachimo dam, underway since 2016, are estimated at more than USD 212 million and were financed by a credit line from China.
With its conclusion, the project will increase its energy production capacity from 8.4 to 34 megawatts (MW), exceeding the local need, that is, around 50 percent of the energy produced should remain in reserve.
The start-up of this energy project will allow the expansion of energy to the benefit of 186,000 residents in Dundo and in the municipalities of Cambulo and Lucapa, including the localities of Fucauma, Cassanguidi, Luxilo and Calonda.
In addition to the home connections that, in the first phase, will benefit more than nine thousand families, the project foresees around 30 industrial connections.
Electricity in Lunda Norte province is produced through thermal sources, pending the conclusion of works to expand the Luachimo hydroelectric dam, which will increase its production capacity from 8.4 to 34 megawatts.
In the municipality of Chitato, two thermal power stations with 30 and 14 megawatts are in operation.
At this time, the assembly of a new 25-megawatt gas-fired power plant in the municipality of Chitato is nearing completion.
