Protect powerlines against vandals - Nankabirwa
Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Ms Ruth Nankabirwa appears before Parliament's committee on Natural Resources on August 23, 2022. PHOTO | PARLIAMENT PRESS
The Minister of Energy, Ms Ruth Nankabirwa, has urged the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) and the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) to urgently devise a mechanism for fighting vandalism of electricity infrastructure.
Speaking during the commissioning of the Shs368 billion Luzira-Namanve electrification project yesterday, Ms Nankabirwa said: “As we (government) undertake various measures to curb vandalism, I call upon UETCL and other power distribution companies to employ innovative solutions to detect, deter and combat vandalism. I also want to urge the public to take keen interest in guarding the power lines.”
A report from the Auditor General’s Office that was released in February last year indicated that vandalism and theft of electricity equipment had become a nationwide problem, costing UETCL billions of shillings in replacement and repair of equipment.
Referring to the Luzira-Namanve electrification project, Ms Nankabirwa said: “This will not only help to meet the growing energy demands of the industrial parks of Mukono, Namanve and Luzira, but it will also help to reduce the strain on our existing infrastructure and lower the risk of power outages.”
Mr Michael Taremwa, the UETCL acting chief executive officer, said the substations will supply reliable and adequate electricity to all categories of consumers. “The eventual delivery of the substations and the transmission lines have been fruits of vigorous activities by the contractor whom we did not want to give any more time extensions due to the huge demands for the power in these industrial parks,” he said.
The commissioning of the 132kV transmission line project increases the transmission network to 4021.56km, the Monitor has learnt.
The project funded by a loan from the Exim Bank of China was initially scheduled to be built in 24 months. However, the timeline was dragged forward for more than two years due to controversies around land acquisition for the transmission lines.
