They have a lot to do the carpenters in Pemba now. New resorts are demanding the well known Zanzibari furniture. Luckily the saws at the local saw mills can run continuously, thanks to the reliable electricity.
At a saw mill in Tumbe the owner Hamis Jumea Abdalla has been able to increase production from an average of 20 to an average of 100 pieces a day, after the cable project. This means more pieces for his local furniture factory. He has employed five more people at the factory, and at the saw mill the number of people working has increased from two to ten.
–We are able to produce more, the number of costumers has increased, and we sell more, says Abdalla.
In the near future he hopes to invest in two more machines for the saw mill.
New resorts
Pemba, an island of about 400.000 people which together with Unguja constitutes Zanzibar, has traditionally not received the same attention from investors as its much more well visited neighbor.
One of the hurdles has been the lack of reliable electricity. But in June 2010 a new 72 kilometer long subsea cable providing electricity from mainland Tanzania to Pemba was officially opened, and replaced three old diesel generators, increasing the capacity.
–The subsea cable has opened the doors to investments in Pemba, says Minister for Infrastructure and Communication in Zanzibar’s Government of Unity Hon. Hamad Masoud Hamad (CUF) at a newly established resort, half a year after the cable started operating.
The government stipulates that about ten new hotels are built or being developed now, partly motivated by the more reliable electricity supply.
Increased welfare
The cable is meant to meet the electricity demand in Pemba for the next 20 to 25 years.
–It is our hope and belief that a reliable and affordable power supply to Pemba will have significant development benefits. It will assist businesses in expanding and it will improve schools, health clinics and public services in general, said Minister Counsellor at the Norwegian Embassy, Svein Bæra, at the opening.
Half a year later, at a primary school in Chake Chake, teacher Bisalma Mohammed has already seen clear benefits from the more reliable electricity supply.
–Before many children could not do their homework because they had other tasks during daytime and during the evenings they had no electricity. Now this has improved, the students do their homework and I expect better results, she explains.
Many families cannot afford to connect to the grid, but the secondary school in the area does now provide study space with lights in the evening. The primary school is planning to do the same.
Facts about the Tanga-Pemba Subsea Cable Project:
• The production and installation of the subsea cable has a total cost of 400 million NOK and has been financed jointly by the governments of Tanzania, Zanzibar and Norway.
• The implementation phase started in August 2008 and was completed in May 2010, 8 months ahead of the completion date stated in the Land Agreement between Zanzibar and Norway.
• The subsea cable has a length of about 72 kilometers and has been installed in the Pemba channel at a maximum depth of 820 meters.
• The peak load in Pemba since starting using power from national grid is 5.2 MW. At load growth of 8% a year the cable, which has a capacity of 25 MW, will most likely be able to supply electricity to meet Pemba’s power demand up to 20 years.
• The Power Purchase Agreement between the Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) and the Zanzibar Electricity Cooperation (ZECO) for buying electricity from national grid reduces ZECO’s costs compared to operating diesel generators.