Bandundu: a fault on the high-voltage line interrupts the electricity supply

Kinshasa, June 1^st, 2025 (CPA). – The city of Bandundu, capital of Kwilu (south-west of the Democratic Republic of Congo), has been without electricity since Saturday following a 220 kV phase failure on the high-voltage line of the National Electricity Company (Snel) between Maluku and Bandundu, CPA has learned on Sunday from the Congolese public electricity operator.  ‘The city of Bandundu has been plunged into darkness since Saturday morning. According to reports from the high-voltage substation, a 220 kV phase has been cut off, which is reminiscent of a similar situation experienced recently,’ has explained Prospere Bakuku, Provincial Director of Snel Bandundu. Faced with this situation, the provincial management has alerted Snel’s head office in Kinshasa to deploy technical teams to identify and repair the fault.  According to the source, the provincial director does not exclude the possibility of sabotage, such as that recently perpetrated by the Mobondo militia. ‘Last time, when the technicians were deployed, they had found that it was an act of sabotage by the Mobondo, which is why we had alerted the authorities to ensure security. This time, we don’t know if it’s still the case, in the same place or elsewhere, but we can’t speculate. We must first deploy teams to assess the situation,’ he has explained.   SNEL has called on the population to remain calm and assured them that it will deploy its teams to restore electricity. It has also pointed out that the electrical infrastructure connecting Maluku to Bandundu crosses the territory of Kwamouth, an area partially controlled by armed groups, which raises concerns about the origin of this outage.  ACP/