The Electricity Generation Company (Egenco) has announced that the rehabilitation of a burst by-pass pipe at its Nkula B Power Station, will take 10 days.

Egenco Chief Executive Officer William Liyabunya was optimistic that generation at the site would return to normalcy at the beginning of January. “It is difficult to tell the loss in monetary value now but we are spending a lot on production and man-power. Apart from that, we feel it is also a loss to the communities and to our economy,” he said.

Nkula B, which produces 100mw, is the second largest power plant after Kapichira, which produces 130MW. A statement by Egenco outlined that the cause of the burst is currently under investigation, as works to repair the bypass pipe are underway, as assured in the statement. “We will keep the public updated once preliminary works and assessment of the extent of damage is complete,” the statement reads.

Meanwhile, Energy Minister Newton Kambala visited the site, stating that there is need to do proper studies to see how quickly the water which is now held in the pipe will be released from the intake down to the power station and, once that water is drained, work on the pipe will begin.