MAPUTO, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- Mozambique's state electricity company EDM announced on Monday that a nationwide program for universal access of electric power will be carried out from next year for a period of ten years.
Addressing a press conference in Maputo, EDM's director of social energy, Joaquim Ou-Chim, said the whole program is worth 6 billion U.S. dollars for power facilities installation up to 2030, with 300 million dollars available for the first stage.
"We believe that by the first quarter of the next year we will already have works on the ground and we will start with the process of connecting new consumers," Ou-Chim said.
The program named "Energy for All" seeks to ensure that by 2030 all Mozambicans will be able to have access to electricity in their homes. So far, only 30 percent of the population has electric power.
At the moment, Ou-Chim said, there are just over 2 million Mozambican households connected to the national electricity grid, and by 2024 the current connection rate is expected to double or triple.
Part of the electrification system will be supported by the source coming from solar panels and mini-grids in the remote areas of the country, he said.
While work is underway for the first phase sponsored by several partners including the World Bank, EDM is seeking more partners' funding for the following phases until the final goal is achieved.
