Catumbela - The Angolan government plans to invest around USD 70 million in implementing an emergency plan to solve the water supply deficit on the coast of Benguela province.
The plan aims for the municipalities of Benguela, Lobito and Baía Farta to recover installed capacity, with the acquisition of pumps and other electromechanical equipment, due to the fact that most of the current equipment is obsolete.
According to the Minister for Energy and Water, João Baptista Borges, the government wants to develop an emergency solution, while waiting for definitive intervention, as part of the third phase of the Águas de Benguela Project.
This plan, the minister pointed out, is an interim action, within the emergency programme, under the coordination of the Benguela Provincial Government, and the investment is estimated at around USD 70 million, as a result of the survey.
In the case of Lobito, where the degradation of equipment, installed over 13 years ago, reduced supply to 50 percent of installed capacity, the government official pointed to the need to extend the distribution network, as well as pumping systems.
