The government of Zambia has appointed a consortium of advisors led by Knight Piésold of the UK, and including the London based legal firm Norton Rose and financial advisor FIeldstone of South Africa, to prepare a privatisation strategy and bidding documents for a number of private power projects, including two major hydro developments.
The assignment, funded by the World Bank, is being undertaken on behalf of the Office for promoting Private Power Investment (OPPPI) within the Ministry of Energy and Water Development. OPPPI has been designated as the ‘one window operation’ to provide the focal point for inward investors considering power sector projects in Zambia.
Among the five power projects for which private finance is being solicited are the 120 MW Itezhi-Tezhi and 600 MW Lower Kafue hydropower schemes on the Kafue River. Both are intended to be BOOT developments. A shortlisting process for both projects has already been undertaken, with three international consortia pre-qualified for Itezhi-Tezhi and two for the lower Kafue project.
It is probable that much of the power from these projects will be exported to other countries within the Southern Africa Power Pool.