By Hasbin Shaw
The Minister of Energy Alhaji Kanja Sesay, has committed to a massive improvement on the network and infrastructural challenges, which has been a perennial cause for evacuation and transmission problems impeding the steady flow of electricity in Western Area.
The Minister made the pledge on Friday, 16th September, 2022 when he inspected electricity warehouses of the Western Area Network Rehabilitation Project funded by the Government of Sierra Leone and World Bank.
During the tour, the Minister complained about the transmission challenges in the Western Area, and also hinted that the Project will greatly improve the current electricity infrastructure in Western Area.
He said that the Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) does not have a power generation crisis, emphasizing that the Karpowership, which has been the city’s main source of electricity supply, is being underutilized, due to transmission challenges in the Western Area.
Sesay said that the challenges of the transmission infrastructure in the Western Area are huge, but could be addressed, as materials for the Project are currently being amassed at different warehouses in Freetown.
He said that it was with the view to addressing many of the challenges that the Energy Sector launched the Utility Reform Project.
“This Project will seek to overhaul the obsolete distribution and transmission network in the Western Area, through the construction of primary substations at Aberdeen, Kingtom, Falcombridge, Cline Town, Jui and Waterloo,” the Minister said.
“With the completion of the new 33kv line, the issue of load shedding would be a thing of the past or… drastically minimized,” he added.
He emphasized that;“the project could be completed between March and April next year, considering the stunning speed materials …are presently coming into the Country.”
He revealed that the Project will also cater for new or unserved communities particularly in the Western Rural, including but not limited to Newton, Kissi Town, Tombo, Lumpa and a few other parts in Waterloo.
Niu Junwei, Chinese representative of the KSEC company, which is the implementing Company of the Project, said that they were expecting fifty more containers filled with materials for the Project, and also reassured that the Project will be completed by next March.