BPC reports a sharp turnaround

For years, Botswana’s electricity system has carried an awkward contradiction: a country rich in sunlight and coal, yet often dependent on electricity purchased from beyond its borders. Now, the Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) says that dependence has narrowed dramatically. During the first quarter of the 2026-27 financial year, the utility supplied 86 percent of the country’s electricity requirements from its own generation assets – a record performance that, if sustained, could reshape the economics and politics of power in one of Africa’s most stable democracies.

David Kgoboko, the corporation’s chief executive, announced the figure during the launch of BPC’s strategy and an event celebrating its ISO certification. He described the result as evidence that the utility’s generating units had become more reliable after years of operational strain. The figure represents a substantial increase from the 67 percent of national electricity requirements that BPC said it met through its own generation during the previous year. The remaining demand was supplied through imports and other arrangements.

The improvement matters because imported electricity has been more than a technical stopgap for Botswana. It has been a costly feature of the country’s power system, exposing the utility to the prices and reliability of regional markets. In 2025, Botswana generated about 2.52 billion kilowatt-hours but imported another 1.86 billion kilowatt-hours to supplement domestic supply, according to an EBSCO overview of Botswana’s energy production. For a country whose economy depends heavily on mining and whose population and businesses require increasingly dependable power, the difference between producing electricity at home and buying it elsewhere can quickly become a fiscal problem.

Kgoboko said the stronger performance had already produced wider benefits. Greater domestic generation, he said, had reduced BPC’s reliance on costly imports, strengthened national energy security and eased pressure on the corporation’s finances. Those claims come at a difficult moment for the utility. BPC has been attempting to improve its generating stations while also investing in transmission and distribution, all under what its chief executive described as severe financial constraints.

The turnaround is especially notable because Botswana’s principal power station has been a persistent source of concern. Morupule B, a 600-megawatt coal-fired plant commissioned in 2012 to reduce the country’s dependence on imported electricity, has faced frequent breakdowns and extended maintenance problems. The World Bank’s Botswana National Energy Compact said the plant’s difficulties had forced Botswana to rely on expensive imports. The country’s recent gains therefore reflect not only new solar capacity but also efforts to restore performance from an older, more troubled generation base.

The challenge for BPC is to prove that the 86 percent figure is not a short-lived peak. Power systems are judged less by their best quarter than by their ability to operate through breakdowns, seasonal shifts in demand and periods when renewable output is unavailable. A utility can report an impressive generation number and still leave households and factories vulnerable if its transmission lines are weak or its remaining units are unreliable. BPC’s strategy launch placed both sides of that equation in view: more electricity from its own assets, alongside a continuing need to strengthen the network that carries power to customers.

The corporation is also trying to change the composition of that electricity. BPC said it now has 209 megawatts of utility-scale renewable energy connected to the national grid. The utility has identified the 100-megawatt Mmadinare and 100-megawatt Jwaneng solar photovoltaic plants as commissioned and in commercial operation. Their arrival marks a shift from treating solar power as a promising addition to treating it as part of the operating backbone of the national grid.

BPC’s rooftop solar program has expanded as well, from 40 megawatts to 75 megawatts, with about 30 megawatts already installed and operating. Rooftop systems do not replace large power stations, and their output varies with the sun, but they can reduce pressure on the central grid during daylight hours. They also distribute generation across homes, businesses and institutions rather than concentrating every megawatt in a few large plants. That can make the system more flexible, though it requires careful coordination, modern grid controls and rules that allow electricity to flow safely in both directions.

The solar push reflects Botswana’s unusual natural advantage. Much of the country receives intense sunlight, making photovoltaic power an attractive way to diversify an electricity system historically tied to coal and imports. The government’s Integrated Resource Plan provides a framework for new generation, and Botswana has set a target of obtaining 50 percent of its energy mix from renewable sources by 2030. The World Bank’s energy compact says the target is expected to be driven primarily by solar photovoltaic installations, with solar capacity projected to reach 1.5 gigawatts by 2030.

That target is much more demanding than simply building solar farms. Solar plants produce power when the sun is shining, while demand continues after sunset. Botswana will need stronger transmission links, better forecasting and storage systems capable of shifting electricity from midday into the evening. The World Bank has pointed to battery energy storage systems as part of the infrastructure needed to integrate a larger share of variable renewable power. Without those investments, additional solar capacity could sit alongside, rather than replace, the old sources of vulnerability.

BPC says it has delivered all renewable energy projects assigned to it under the Integrated Resource Plan. The corporation is also targeting as much as 1.3 gigawatts of solar energy by 2030, according to its [electricity generation update. The scale of that ambition is significant for a country with a relatively small population and a power system that has struggled to turn installed capacity into dependable output. It suggests that Botswana is no longer treating renewable energy merely as an environmental commitment. It is presenting solar power as a tool of energy security, financial repair and industrial policy.

The shift is unfolding alongside structural changes in the electricity sector. In July 2025, the government began unbundling BPC, separating generation operations from transmission and distribution, according to the [U.S. International Trade Administration. Such reforms are intended to clarify responsibilities and attract investment, though they can also expose the financial condition of each part of a utility more plainly. Generation companies must maintain plants and secure fuel or power purchase agreements. Transmission and distribution operators must expand networks, reduce losses and connect new producers. The success of Botswana’s energy plan will depend on whether those pieces work together after the institutional changes.

The latest production figure may also strengthen BPC’s hand in the difficult argument over tariffs and public finances. The corporation has previously sought substantial tariff adjustments, saying that its financial position has been strained by the cost of imported electricity and the need to maintain its infrastructure. More domestic generation could reduce one major expense, but it will not eliminate the capital required to repair aging plants, reinforce the grid and build storage. Nor will it remove the pressure created by rising demand from households, commercial customers and mines.

For consumers, the significance of the announcement will be measured less by the percentage printed in a corporate presentation than by what happens at the wall socket. They will want fewer interruptions, more predictable service and prices that do not rise simply because the utility has shifted from one expensive source to another. Businesses will be watching for the same signs. Reliable electricity can lower operating costs, support new investment and reduce the need for private backup generators. Unreliable power, by contrast, passes its costs quietly through lost production, damaged equipment and higher prices.

Botswana’s record quarter is therefore both an achievement and a test. It shows that the country’s generating assets can perform better and that solar projects are moving from plans into commercial operation. It also leaves unanswered questions about durability: whether Morupule B can remain dependable, whether BPC can finance the next phase of its expansion and whether the grid can absorb a flood of new solar power. The corporation has moved from a period defined by imports and breakdowns toward one defined by higher domestic production. To reach its 2030 goal, it will have to keep moving, not in a single dramatic leap, but through the unglamorous work of maintenance, network construction, financial discipline and daily reliability.

The post BPC reports a sharp turnaround appeared first on Weekend Post.