Although the Ministry of Energy and its relevant stakeholders have intimated the ambition to be a key power trader by 2050, this can only be made possible by intentional investment into the enabling infrastructure for generation, transmission and distribution of power. This places the Government of Zambia in a unique situation due to the infrastructure investment limitations arising from restructuring of the country’s external debt. One of the conditions the government has, is that it cannot provide a guarantee for any infrastructure related projects. So, what can be done?
The Government could explore a Public Private Partnership (PPP). PPPs provide a viable solution for infrastructure development challenges that are present within the energy sector. Under this funding model, the Government will carry out a rigorous evaluation to ensure the country extracts the maximum benefit from this partnership.
The risk sharing model ensures that private players work towards meeting their deadlines and see projects to completion since payment is tied to achieving project milestones. This ultimately will lead to reducing the turnaround time for public infrastructure projects.
Additionally, the PPP model attracts international private sector players. This will allow for skills transfer, resulting in upskilling of Zambian power sector stakeholders since the involvement of international players introduces international best practices.
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