- Zambia is set to resume construction of the USD320 million Zambia–Tanzania Interconnector Project (ZTIP), a 620 km, 400kV double-circuit transmission line stretching from Kabwe in Zambia to Iringa and Sumbawanga in Tanzania.
- Co-financed by the World Bank (€245 million), European Union (€30 million) , and the UK (€18 million), the project is expected to be completed by 2028.
The interconnector will enable efficient power exchange between Zambia and Tanzania, enhancing grid stability and catalysing regional electricity trade. Tanzania is finding itself with excess power as more units of the 2115MW Nyerere Hydro Project come online. Read more
The project will also enable Tanzania to connect with member countries of the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) through Zambia and Eastern Africa Power Pool (EAPP) through Kenya and become a centre for electricity trade for member countries of the EAPP & SAPP.
Achim Fock, The World Bank’s Country Manager for Zambia, noted that an integrated market connecting the Southern and East African power pools would lower electricity costs, boost energy security, and unlock new opportunities for trade and investment across Africa.
Additional benefits include improving power supply reliability for future plants in southern Tanzania and creating a major transmission corridor that connects Ethiopia–Kenya–Tanzania to Southern Africa through Zambia.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
