Swaziland's power crises could kick start freight growth

MBABANE – It could be lights out in Swaziland if SA’s Democratic Alliance (DA) has its way and SA stops exporting electricity to neighbouring countries. However, the power cut-off scenario that would leave the country’s residences and businesses in darkness and its industry incapacitated would also result in a massive inf lux of road-transported materials to build a local power generating infrastructure. “Producing electricity to replace power now supplied by Eskom would be a huge undertaking. Transformers, cables, switches, materials to build steel towers and everything else would have to be brought in from SA because none is found in Swaziland and not much could be manufactured here,” said Ed Dube, a business consultant in Mbabane who advises investors on how to cope with Swaziland’s electricity supply, which is already erratic even with Eskom providing 80% of the country’s power. The DA wants parliamentary hearings as to why SA, which is experiencing power shortages, continues to supply Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland with electricity. SA’s main opposition party wants the immediate negation of the treaty that allows this, which expires in 2024. “There is no good reason why these agreements should not be put on hold or cancelled responsibly and immediately to alleviate our current energy shortage. It is unacceptable that we continue to supply electricity to neighbouring countries when we cannot supply our own country sufficiently,” DA MP Wilmot James said in parliament. Of the 13 589 GWh of electricity that Eskom supplies to southern African countries, Swaziland received about 800 GWh. But with only two small hydroelectric plants currently producing power locally, Swaziland depends on its allotment. Although Swaziland produces coal, which is shipped by rail to SA for industrial use, a European firm investigating the possibility of building a coal-fuelled power plant determined the local coal type was not suitable for the project. That leaves hydro-power and alternative energy solutions like solar, wind and thermal (hot springs), all of which could in theory be used to produce electricity. “Harnessing the rivers for power generation is the most likely, because there is some experience doing that here,” said Dube. Swaziland has developed a good electricity grid throughout the country, especially following a rural electrification initiative. Ten years ago the country also installed its leg of a transregional power line which stretches from SA to Zambia. But for some metal work that could be done locally, all materials necessary to build an electricity-generating capacity would have to be imported from or via SA, as has been done previously on a less grand scale. Road is the likely mode of transport. However, by 2017 the Lothair rail link will be completed, permitting rail traffic to travel directly into Swaziland from Gauteng via the Mpumalanga province. “This would be a business bonanza for the freight haulage companies. Swaziland needs to develop its own power supply sooner or later and Eskom’s crisis is getting people talking,” said Dube. CAPTION A Swazi electrician works on a power line … it could be lights out in Swaziland if SA’s Democratic Alliance has its way and SA stops exporting electricity to neighbouring countries.