Africa hydro-power project cost soars

THE cost of developing five hydropower stations on a river shared by Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo will more than double to $2.7-billion (R38-billion) due to delays in agreements between the governments, a senior industry official said yesterday.

Copperbelt Energy Corp Africa managing director Michael Tarney said developing the five sites with a total capacity of more than 700MW would exceed the $1-billion (R14-billion) estimate from a 2012 study. – Reuters