Why Morupule B was doomed from the start :: Mmegi Online

A damning report by the World Bank this week suggests there was little chance of success for Morupule B, the troubled multi-billion pula power station that triggered loadshedding, business losses and even diplomatic tensions. Staff Writer, MBONGENI MGUNI reports

Right from the start, according to the World Bank’s latest assessment, Morupule B got off on the wrong technical footing. On that Friday in February 2010, as scores of dignitaries, the media and others gathered for the power station’s groundbreaking ceremony, there was no clue of the disaster that lay ahead.

On that day, then energy minister, Ponatshego Kedikilwe, appealed for the power station’s delivery on time and within budget and China National Electrical Engineering Company (CNEEC) officials pledged to hand over a shiny, new operational facility in cost and time.