Zambia plans to bring online a high-voltage electricity transmission line connecting the country to Tanzania in the second quarter of 2029, strengthening regional power trade and supply security. The announcement was made on Thursday by Zambian Energy Minister Peter Kapala during an address to parliament.

The project, agreed in 2014, envisages the construction of a roughly 2,300-kilometre transmission line designed to interconnect Zambia, Tanzania and Kenya, at an estimated total investment of US$1.2 billion.

To fund its portion of the project, Zambia has mobilised US$292 million in non-reimbursable financing provided by the World Bank Group, the European Union and the United Kingdom. The country will be responsible for building just over 600 kilometres of transmission lines.

According to Peter Kapala, completion of the infrastructure will link the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) to the Eastern Africa Power Pool (EAPP), creating conditions for Zambia to trade up to 500 megawatts of power and consolidate its position as a regional electricity trading hub.

The minister explained that last month, Chinese consortium Sinotech was selected to carry out the first two phases of the project. The first phase covers 186 kilometres between the Pensulo substation and Mpika, while the second spans 200 kilometres between Mpika and the Kasama substation in northern Zambia.

“Full execution of the Zambia-Tanzania electricity interconnection project will take 24 months, with commissioning scheduled for the second quarter of 2029,” Peter Kapala said.