Kæmpedæmningen over Zambezi-floden i Tete-provinsen (hvor Danmark har været meget aktiv med bistand) står som et monument over Portugals koloniherredømme i 1960erne og skulle sælge billig strøm til apartheid-Sydafrika – men el-ledningerne, bygget 1977-79, blev saboteret.
Portugal has agreed to give up its remaining stake in a giant hydroelectric dam in Mozambique, ending a long-running dispute, BBC online reports Monday.
Portugal, the former colonial power, had retained control of the Cahora Bassa dam on the Zambezi River after Mozambique became independent in 1975, but gave up most of its stake five years ago.
The Portuguese Prime Minister, Pedro Passos Coelho, signed the deal on a visit to Mozambique.
Cahora Bassa is a vital source of electricity for Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
There were decades of wrangling between the African country and the Portuguese over who should pay for damage to the dam in the war of independence and the subsequent civil war between FRELIMO and the South african backed RENAMO.
The sense of urgency in Portugal to resolve the issue had increased sharply in recent months, as it is under pressure from international lenders to privatise state assets.
Portuguese companies are also eager to do business in what is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, at a time when Portugal itself is in deep recession, BBC notes.
