{
  "id": 8517149,
  "title": "Eswatini Energy Plan Aims to Cut Power Imports by 2034",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/19/eswatini-energy-plan-aims-to-cut-power-imports-by-2034",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-19T18:34:14.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Rio Times",
    "slug": "the-rio-times",
    "url": "https://www.riotimesonline.com/eswatini-energy-independence-imf-growth-2026/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, is working towards reducing its reliance on electricity imports by 2034. The country currently imports most of its electricity from neighboring countries, primarily South Africa and Mozambique. A masterplan, adopted in October 2018, aims to cut import dependency from over 50% to less than 10% within the next decade. The plan emphasizes the need for domestic renewable energy generation, targeting a total capacity of 676 megawatts by 2034, with around 70% of it coming from renewable sources. The plan also includes universal electrification by 2030. Renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, bagasse co-generation, and hydro are considered economically competitive. Coal and gas are deemed uneconomical unless necessary. Several projects are underway, including a 10 megawatt solar plant in Lavumisa and a 300 megawatt coal-fired station in Lubhuku. However, the transition comes with increased costs for consumers, as tariffs have been increased by an average of 13.61% for 2026 and 2027. The electricity issue is primarily due to Eswatini's inability to generate most of its own power. As a result, the country's economy is closely tied to its neighbors, with over 70% of its electricity consumption sourced from South Africa and Mozambique. The masterplan aims to change this dependency by investing in domestic renewable energy capacity.",
  "summary": "Eswatini imports 70-80% of its electricity. New biomass, solar and oil-reserve projects aim to change that, and the IMF projects 4.6% growth this year on the investment wave. The post Eswatini Energy Plan Aims to Cut Power Imports by 2034 appeared first on The Rio Times .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}