Africa-Press – Tanzania. DEPUTY Minister for Energy, Judith Kapinga, has directed the Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) to ensure that power supply interruptions for maintenance purposes do not exceed eight hours.
The directive was issued in Parliament yesterday in response to a supplementary question from Mbagala MP, Abdallah Chaurembo (CCM), who expressed concern over prolonged power outages in his constituency, sometimes lasting more than 12 hours a day.
“There have been reports of outages exceeding 12 hours daily. Does the government see the need to limit this to at least eight hours?” he asked.
In response, Ms Kapinga acknowledged the situation, particularly in Mbande and surrounding areas of Mbagala in Dar es Salaam, citing ongoing maintenance as the primary cause.
“I have instructed TANESCO managers to ensure that all maintenance-related outages are limited to a maximum of eight hours, as agreed. Any disruption beyond that is unacceptable and should be corrected immediately,” she said.
The deputy minister further explained that the Mbagala power substation is currently overloaded as it serves a large number of areas.
To ease the strain, the government has prioritised the construction of a new substation in Mkuranga.
In his main question, Mr Chaurembo had asked when the persistent power outages in several wards of the Mbagala Constituency, including Chamazi, Mianzini, Kilungule, Charambe, Mbagala Kiburungwa and Kijichi—would be resolved.
Ms Kapinga responded that the power cuts are primarily due to the load burden on the existing Mbagala substation.
To address this, TANESCO has already installed a new 120 MVA transformer at the station, which will soon become operational.
She also revealed that the government plans to upgrade the 132 kV transmission line from Kinyerezi to Mbagala via Gongolamboto by installing highercapacity cables.
The deputy minister said a 240 MVA power substation is being constructed at Dundani in Mkuranga District to further relieve pressure on the Mbagala system.
“The completion of these projects will significantly improve electricity supply in Mbagala and surrounding areas,” she assured.
Deputy Speaker and Ilala MP, Mussa Azzan Zungu, echoed the concerns, noting that power cuts are also frequent in other parts of Dar es Salaam.
“Power outages are very common in Ilala, Kinondoni and other districts. Ilala hosts many key government activities. I urge the ministry to prioritise and improve the electricity situation in these areas,” he said.
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