Work to repair and modernise the Matala hydroelectric dam in Angola are progressing well and the masonry work is expected to be finished by the end of the year, the director of Angolan power company Empresa Nacional de Electricidade (ENE) said in Lubango, Huíla province.

João Pinto also said that with two turbines operating the dam produces around 40 megawatts of power, which is not enough for the province’s needs, and the modernisation project, costing US$266 million, will replace the three existing turbines and boost power production.

Pinto told Angolan news agency Angop that the company would increase the power supply to the city of Lubango from 80 to 120 megawatts following installation of a thermal power plant in June.

The ENE director in Huíla said that thermal power plant would be built in the same location as a sub-station in the railway neighbourhood and would have a capacity of 40 megawatts.

He noted that this amount of power would be in addition to another 40 megawatts generated by the Arimba thermal power plant and the same amount by the Matala hydroelectric plan, which is currently undergoing repair and modernisation.

As well as construction of the Lubango thermal power plant, Pinto said that ENE would also repair the electricity supply grid in the Matala municipal area, 180 kilometres from the capital of Huíla province. (macauhub)