The company Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) has spent more than 150 million meticals repairing damage to the power distribution network caused by extreme events, most notably the severe storm Filipo in the 2023-2024 rainy and cyclonic season.
According to an article made public this Wednesday, 26 June, by the newspaper Notícias, the investments in infrastructure replacement challenge the company to be more attentive to the climate in order to define operating strategies and adopt emergency and contingency plans.
According to the company’s representative, Aíssa Naímo, EDM entered the recent rainy season still reeling from the effects of the previous period’s damage, especially the erosion that aggravated the fall of power distribution poles this year, with greater incidence in the north, leaving thousands of families in the dark.
The source said that in order to deal with these problems, based on the information on the rainy season forecast shared by the National Meteorological Institute, EDM will do its groundwork, which will consist of overlaying the network.
Aíssa Naímo explained that the company is opting to install concrete distribution poles instead of wooden ones, which are more vulnerable to storms. Despite these efforts, she lamented the fact that the distribution network is not completely geo-referenced, which makes it difficult to identify where there are problems and to access them, since in addition to damage to the electrical infrastructure, roads are also affected during extreme weather events.
Still on the subject of the impact of the rains, Naímo revealed that despite the reduction in power generation at the Chicamba and Mavuzi power stations in Manica province, they continue to operate normally.
It should be noted that EDM has more than 85 transformation substations, more than 6,000 kilometres of transmission lines and a vast distribution network.
