US$250 MILLION MERCURIA–EXERGY DEAL BOOSTS ZAMBIA’S GROW ZAMBIA ENERGY AGENDA
LUSAKA, Zambia — Global energy and commodities group Mercuria and Africa-focused integrated energy investor Exergy Energy have signed a US$250 million financing agreement aimed at accelerating major electricity generation and transmission projects in Zambia and the wider region.
The agreement represents a significant private-capital commitment to Zambia’s power sector and, subject to regulatory approvals, will finance projects being developed through Exergy subsidiaries Lunzua Power Company and Lusitu Transmission and Distribution Company.
The investment comes as Zambia accelerates implementation of its broader economic growth strategy, under which expansion of electricity generation has become one of the critical foundations for increased production across mining, agriculture, manufacturing, tourism and other industries.
Government has set a target of expanding national electricity generation capacity to approximately 10,000 megawatts by 2030–2031, supported by both public and private investment. The Ministry of Energy says Zambia’s project pipeline is aimed at reaching the 10,000 MW level, while the country’s Integrated Resource Plan similarly projects generation capacity of roughly 10,013 MW by 2030.
The Mercuria–Exergy financing therefore represents more than an energy transaction. It supports one of the principal enabling conditions behind the Grow Zambia Agenda: ensuring that economic expansion is matched by sufficient, reliable and diversified electricity infrastructure.
Exergy operates across the electricity value chain through Lunzua Power Company, focused on generation; Lusitu Transmission and Distribution Company, focused on power infrastructure; and Kanona, which trades electricity and balances surplus and deficit positions.
Lunzua is already developing generation assets in Zambia, while Lusitu is pursuing transmission infrastructure aimed at strengthening domestic supply as well as regional electricity trading. Independent reporting has identified Lusitu as developing a privately financed high-voltage connection between southern Tanzania and Nakonde, complementing wider efforts to strengthen connections between Southern and Eastern African electricity markets.
This generation-to-transmission-to-trading model is particularly relevant to Zambia’s growth ambitions because increasing generation alone will not be enough. New electricity must also be transmitted efficiently to mines, farms, factories, businesses and population centres where economic activity is expanding.
Zambia’s Integrated Resource Plan anticipates substantial increases in electricity demand from mining, agriculture, commercial and industrial activity, households and power exports as the economy grows.
The deal also comes against the backdrop of reforms opening Zambia’s electricity market to greater private-sector participation. President Hakainde Hichilema has cited Open Access to the national grid and changes to the licensing framework among reforms intended to allow more Independent Power Producers and private electricity traders to participate in the market.
According to information released on the transaction, Mercuria said Zambia’s stability, economic growth plans and strategic regional position contributed to its decision to commit long-term capital.
Mercuria is one of the world’s major independent energy and commodity groups and already has a commercial presence in Zambia through a metals-trading partnership with the Industrial Development Corporation established in 2024.
Beyond financing, the company is expected to contribute global market analytics, trading and risk-management expertise and international commercial relationships to Exergy’s expansion.
The regional dimension is equally significant.
Zambia’s geographical position and participation in the Southern African Power Pool, combined with planned links toward East Africa, create opportunities for the country to develop into a larger regional electricity-trading hub. Zambia’s Integrated Resource Plan specifically identifies transmission expansion and strategic interconnectors as part of the country’s future role in regional power trade.
The projects also complement Mission 300, the World Bank Group and African Development Bank initiative seeking to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030. The initiative specifically emphasizes electricity infrastructure, private investment and stronger regional power markets as mechanisms for accelerating access and economic transformation.
For Zambia, the significance of the US$250 million commitment will ultimately depend on how quickly the financed projects move from investment agreements to completed generation and transmission infrastructure.
But the direction is consistent with the country’s stated growth strategy: mobilising private capital, expanding generation, strengthening transmission and using reliable electricity as an enabling infrastructure for higher production across the economy.
Under the Grow Zambia Agenda, the 10,000 MW target is therefore not simply an electricity objective. It is infrastructure intended to support the productive capacity required for Zambia’s wider ambitions in mining, agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, SMEs and regional trade.
The Mercuria–Exergy transaction adds another substantial private-capital commitment toward building that energy base.