Hidroeléctrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB)
Maputo, 2 May (AIM) – Hidroelectrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB), the company that operates the Cahora Bassa dam on the Zambezi River, in the western Mozambican province of Tete, has achieved, over the last year, a net profit of 13.1 billion meticais (204.8 million dollars, at the current exchange rate).
According to an HCB statement, this is the highest figure in the company’s history, representing a growth of 41.4 percent compared to 2022.
The amount, the document says, is result of the total production generated in 2023, which stood at 16,057.5 gigawatt-hours (GWh), 12.36 percent higher than planned.
“This is also the result of the successful revision of the tariff for selling energy abroad. The results for the financial year ending 2023 make us very proud, as they represent one of the highest levels achieved by HCB, both financially and in terms of energy production. It demonstrates our commitment to careful management of the company’s resources. It encourages us to continue with our vision of increasing energy generation capacity, which will have an impact on Mozambique’s positioning as a regional energy hub”, said the company’s chairman of board of directors, Tomás Matola, cited in the document.
The statement also pointed out that, at the company’s general meeting, the shareholders approved the following net profit to be allocated: 55 per cent to dividends, 35 per cent to the investment reserve and 10 percent to retained earnings.
As a result, HCB will pay dividends to the state of 6.3 billion Meticais (100 million US dollars), corresponding to 0.27 Meticais per share, an increase of 73.2 per cent compared to the dividends paid the previous year.
“HCB remains committed to carrying out activities linked to the maintenance programmes for the equipment at its hydroelectric complex, while at the same time preparing to implement the 10-year Vital Capex, which will consist of rehabilitating critical equipment for generating and transporting energy because it has exceeded its useful life”, reads the note.
According to Matola, the company is committed to growing its production capacity with the implementation of a generation diversification and expansion strategy that minimizes the impact of reduced production during the rehabilitation and modernization of HCB’s south bank power station while projecting HCB’s generation capacity to increase by around 4,000 megawatts by 2032.
“This target stems from the 2,075 MW of the current south bank station, the capacity of the future north bank station (1,245 MW), the capacity of the Photovoltaic Plant (400 MW) and other renewable energy projects that are in the feasibility study phase”, he said.
(AIM)
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