Power Cuts Disrupting Hospital Operations
The Ministry of Health Spokesperson, Adrian Chikumbe has lamented the continuous blackouts, which he says are affecting the the the operations of public hospitals.
The complaint comes at a time when the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) has increased period for it’s customers to experience intermittent power outages.
In an interview, Chikumbe says that hospitals are having to spend more to sustain operations in places like theatres when power is interrupted.
He has pleaded with the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) to spare facilities during load shedding.
ESCOM spokesperson Kitty Chingota says that currently, the organisationon has reduced power supply due to the damage of Kapichira power station.
She says that they can not spare district hospitals and health centres located in residential areas from load shedding, and she asked such institutions to find power backup for now.
Meanwhile, President Lazarus MacCarthy Chakwera, has today (Monday) officially inaugurated the 20MW Golomoti Solar Power Plant in the area of Senior Chief Kachindamoto in Dedza District.
The 20MW project has a 5MW battery energy storage System (BESS). The project is the first utility-scale solar plus storage project in sub-Saharan Africa and the second utility scale solar project in Malawi.
