Talks to resume on Cahora Bassa power

MAPUTO -- Mozambique, Portugal and South Africa are set to resume talks on the giant Cahora Bassa dam in Mozambique, a senior official said here yesterday.

Mozambique's energy minister, Castigo Langa, said the talks had been stalled by the fall earlier this year of the Socialist Party government in Portugal.

"We have begun contacts with the new Portuguese government so that the negotiations can resume as soon as possible," Langa said.

Langa said that a tariff dispute between the dam's operating company and its main client, Eskom, the South African power supply company, is at the centre of discussions.

Mozambique is also interested in negotiating the dam's R25 billion accumulated debt and Mozambique's full ownership of the scheme, Langa added.

Currently Portugal, the former colonial power in Mozambique, owns an 82 percent stake in the dam, leaving Mozambique with the remaining 18 percent.

The dam's operating company and Eskom have failed to agree on a price for electricity supply, with Mozambique insisting the SA 2c Eskom pays per kilowatt per hour of energy is too little.

Mozambique President Joaquim Chissano is due to discuss the issue later this month with President Thabo Mbeki, Langa said. -- Sapa-AFP