Thu, 27 Apr 2017 11:28:48 +0000
New tariffs to benefit more people-Mundende
By SIMON MWANZA
THE planned ‘‘lifeline tariff’’ adjustment by ZESCO will allow a lot of people to enjoy more units at the same price, says managing director Victor Mundende.
Mr Mundende said the proposed lifeline tariff simply allowed customers consuming up to 300 units of electricity in a month, to pay only 15 ngwee per kWh (excluding monthly fixed charge and taxes).
In an interview, Mr Mundende said the company had applied to adjust the lifeline tariff so that it could cater for the low income groups.
“This means that Zambian households can plan and control expenditure on electricity by keeping consumption to the lowest tariff band possible.
“They can do this by implementing energy saving practices such as Switch and Save, CFL bulb replacement, using alternative energy sources such as LPG cookers, solar geysers and solar lighting systems,” said Mr Mundende
“While adjusting the tariff, we are very mindful that a lot of people can’t afford the 75 percent tariff increase. And so we have a tariff called the lifeline tariff which is 100 units per 15 ngwee. We have applied to adjust that from 100 to 300 units so that a lot of people can enjoy that lifeline tariff at the same price,” Mr. Mundende has said.
Mr. Mundende has however said for ZESCO to create an appetite for investment in the current projects, there was need for a correct tariff.
“For us to create appetite for investment, we need a correct tariff. Electricity has been at the same price for a long time. While the dynamics of the economy are changing, the price for electricity has not changed,” he said.
He said among many projects that were currently under construction were the 750MW Kafue Gorge Lower and the 2,400 MW Batoka Gorge which will be launched soon.
“These projects are very expensive projects. Kafue Gorge Lower will cost us about US$2 billion. Batoka is estimated at US$4 billion. Surely, this is huge amounts of money which require appetite from the investors to come and invest,” he said.
Mr Mundende appealed to Zambians to support the increment of the tariffs so that the country can attract investment.
“My appeal to my fellow Zambians is that you should support the tariff adjustment so that we can embark on these many projects.
“Once we do all these projects, we will ensure that we provide you with a reliable supply of power, with power which will be there 100 percent, 24 hours every day,” said Mr. Mundende.
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Copper output expected to hit 850,000 MT
By BUUMBA CHIMBULU
ZAMBIA’S copper production for 2017 is expected to be around 850,000 tonnes owing to new production coming on stream from different mines, Ministry of Mines and Mineral Development permanent secretary, Paul Chanda, has projected.
This is up from the current 774,000 tonnes at the end of 2016.
Mr Chanda said in an interview that the target of 850,000 MT is achievable with the new projects coming on stream.
“Mopani has been expanding its underground mines in Kitwe and Mufulira to increase production as well as prolong the life of the mines,” he said.
He explained that the Kalumbila mine, with a design capacity of 250, 000 tonnes, was also coming into full production of 150,000 per annum following the acquisition of more power from Maamba coal mine.
Mr Chanda further explained that Chambishi Metals and Konkola Copper Mines had also ramped up imports of copper concentrates from DR Congo.
“Sino Metals has opened an open pit mine called Mwambashi with a full production of 15,000 and Chibuluma mine has opened up a new project called Chifupu and is in production. The total mine output is 20,000 MT. The rest of the information remains accurate,” he said.
He said the increase in copper production was premised on Government’s prudent steps to create a favourable investment environment in the mining sector.
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Borrow to make profit and pay back, Govt urged
BY MAILESI BANDA
GOVERNMENT should invest the money they borrow and avoid using it on projects that will not generate a profit, Economic Association of Zambia president Crispin Mpuka has said.
Dr. Mpuka said borrowing to invest in projects that will generate profits will help Zambia fight the debt burden the country was carrying.
Speaking in an interview with the Daily Nation, he said borrowed money should be used for investment while ensuring that it generated profit.
“Government should ensure that the money they borrow is not used for consumption purposes, but rather for projects that will bring in a profit to the country and help in the servicing of the debt,’’ he said.
He said in order for money that was borrowed to work for the benefit of economic growth there was need for the money to generate a profit and continue doing so even after the debt was paid back.
He explained that debt should be the source of financing projects rather than for the use of projects that would not directly help in the servicing of the debt.
“We have observed in recent years that the Government has concentrated on the construction of roads that are good for infrastructure development but not from money that is borrowed; while roads could be of economic value they do not directly generate a profit,’’ he said.
He stated that debt should be used for the development of the economy so that even after it was paid back the country would still benefit.
The burden of debt is usually carried by the people, whatever the country borrowed should be used to generate the resources to be used to pay back, only then would the country be able to sustain economic growth.
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Parmalat plans to export more this year
By BUUMBA CHIMBULU
PARMALAT Zambia Limited is targeting to export 728,894 litres of dairy products this year to neighbouring countries, company managing director Aldo Prins has said.
Mr Prins explained that the products to be exported included fruit juice, UHT milk, flavoured milk, yogurt, and ice cream, among others.
He was speaking during the tour of Parmalat Zambia by Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry permanent secretary, Kayula Siame.
Mr Prins also bemoaned the low per capita consumption of dairy products in the country, saying the company was working towards educating the general public on the need to consume dairy products.
He said the company was currently exporting its products to Zimbabwe, DRC and Malawi, adding that it had exported 718, 197 litres of dairy products in 2016 compared to 672, 621 in 2015.
“We have been facing challenges in exporting our products, some countries are politically unstable, the border procedures are also cumbersome, and we are also competing with countries with cheaper exports,” he said.
And Ms Siame said Government was considering creating a trade zone at Kasumbalesa border post in Chililabombwe to ensure that trade was done in a designated manner at the border.
Ms Kayula noted that there had been much talk of trade being disorganised at the border, hence Government was looking at establishing a physical structure that would incorporate all stakeholders dealing in trade with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
She said Government was also looking at finalising the one-stop border post concept at Kasumbalesa border post to make it easier to move exports into DRC.
“We know that that’s one of the key borders in Zambia in terms of the trade and the volume of trade that actually crosses this border. The DRC market remains one of Zambia’s largest markets and ensuring that trade is facilitated smoothly will go a long way in growing the market further.
“We will also be looking at Simplified Trade Regime (STR), where we will be looking at the smaller traders, those will also need to cross with a maximum amount of US$2,000, and then we are also looking at creating a trade zone because there has been a lot of talk about how the trade is going on,” she said.
She said Government was currently looking at regulations that would be put in place at the zone and how the structure would look like once constructed.
Ms Siame said Government was committed to ensure that trade was expanded, saying that the Congolese government had expressed interest to continue its trade relationship with Zambia.
She disclosed that her ministry would next week have bilateral meetings with their Congolese counterparts to discuss trade between the two countries.
Ms Siame said the Government had signed bilateral agreements with Angola and DRC to ease trade with the two countries.
She further encouraged the Parmalat Zambia Limited to source materials locally to reduce on the cost of production if they were to make more money.
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Stanbic first bank to go e-NAPSA
BY MAILESI BANDA
STANBIC Bank Zambia has become one of the first banks to integrate the e-NAPSA platform, which aims at improving the management of statutory pension contributions in the country.
Speaking during the launch of the partnership, Stanbic bank chief executive officer, Charles Mudiwa, said they were proud to be associated with the e-NAPSA project.
He said the electronic system supported banking products and was good for financial inclusion.
“We are very proud to be associated with the project and it is important that as we roll out the e-NAPSA project we should support it with banking products because we are encouraging financial inclusion,” he said.
He expressed excitement over the project, adding that the partnership was a good platform aimed at facilitating entry into technology and allowing the future generation to embrace the savings culture.
And NAPSA Director General Yollard Kachinda said e-NAPSA was necessitated by the changing business environment, which was becoming more automated by online platforms.
He said the company had adopted the e-NAPSA process of remitting pensions contributions as part of the migration to the paperless technology.
“At NAPSA we have noted the ever-changing business and social trends in our society with a lot of activities and businesses being driven and anchored by ICTs and this has led to most of our key operations becoming paperless,” he said.
He said he was pleased that with the integration of the e-NAPSA with the Stanbic Bank.
The National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA) launched the e-NAPSA platform last week. The system enables employers and employees to transact their pension contributions online.
E-NAPSA, which was implemented in October 2016, is set to improve the management of contributions and benefits information and to promote effective customer services by NAPSA.
With the new system, employers can register their employees, file monthly returns and make payments for statutory NAPSA contributions electronically.
