PRESIDENT Hakainde Hichilema says in three years time, with or without rain, there will be no load shedding in Zambia.
On Monday, President Hichilema commissioned the 100-megawatt Chisamba Solar Power Plant which he said would contribute to government’s target of producing 1000 megawatts of solar power this year.
The Head of State expressed confidence in what has been done so far with regards to ending load-shedding, adding that on Tuesday, State House hosted a meeting with energy experts to discuss more on changing the country’s energy sector.
He explained that government was focusing on non hydro based energy sources such as solar so that even when hit by a drought, the country doesn’t get prone to blackouts.
“This country will be a totally different country in threes years time, with or without rain, we will have power. Electricity in three years time because of non hydro based energy,” he said.
“I never talked about closing hydro power stations, I talked about resilience based, on diversification on the energy sources.”
He said what government was doing to make the future brighter in this period, is what will bear beautiful fruits in the energy sector for the country.
“1000 megawatts of solar this year, we are working hard. Two days ago, I called the energy team to run through our programme,” he assured the nation.
The Head of State said this at State House during a swearing in ceremony for seven key government officials yesterday.
The newly commissioned US$100 million Chisamba Solar Power Plant happens to be the largest single site solar project in the country’s history this far.
By Catherine Pule
Kalemba, July 4, 2025
