he Zambian government has sealed contract deals with five contractor consortiums to roll out a nationwide solar power project under the Presidential Constituency Energy Initiative (PCEI), aiming to tackle the country’s persistent electricity supply shortages.
Worth ZMW4.3 billion (approximately US$234,979), the landmark programme covers all 156 parliamentary constituencies across Zambia, with a 2MW solar plant to be built in each constituency, summing up to a total installed capacity of 312MW. All solar facilities will be connected to the national power grid managed by state-owned utility ZESCO.
The five awarded consortiums bring together prominent local and international enterprises, including Sunshare Construction and China Railway Construction Engineering Group, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, Golden Baobab Investments and Huawei Technologies Zambia, Chetam Metals Fabrication and ZamChin Construction Company, as well as China Jiangxi International Corporation and Qingdao Haier Photovoltaic New Energy Company.
Approved by Zambia’s Cabinet in November 2025, the entire project portfolio is set to be completed within 12 months. The construction phase is projected to create around 15,600 jobs, greatly boosting local employment and economic development.
Nicholas Phiri, Permanent Secretary for Technical Services, highlighted the strategic significance of the initiative at the contract signing ceremony. He noted that power generated by the new solar plants will be fed directly into the ZESCO national grid to narrow Zambia’s power deficit. Aligned with the country’s macroeconomic and developmental goals, the PCEI will effectively expand national power generation capacity in the long run.
The project also features sustainable community benefits. Local authorities will hold equity in the solar plants, securing stable long-term revenue for community development. The enhanced power capacity will support year-round irrigated agricultural cultivation, helping Zambia achieve its national target of ten million metric tonnes of maize output.
