In short: Tanzania’s published public awards for transformers, switchgear, substations and cables from 2023 to early 2026 add up to about 50 million US dollars across 300 awards. TANESCO, through its head office and regional offices, made about four in five of them. Transformers are the largest category by value, driven by substation capacity additions in 2025.
Key numbers
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Awards found | 300 (published data for 2023 to early 2026) |
| Total value | about 50 million US dollars |
| Share awarded by TANESCO (head office and regional offices) | 237 of 300 (79%), about 39 million US dollars |
| 2024 | 144 awards, about 9.8 million US dollars |
| 2025 | 140 awards, about 39.9 million US dollars |
2023 and 2026 are only partly covered by the published data, so year-on-year comparisons should use 2024 and 2025.
By product
| Category | Awards | Value (about, US dollars) |
|---|---|---|
| Transformers (supply, installation, replacement, repair) | 145 | 30.1 million |
| Substation and line works | 113 | 9.3 million |
| Cables and conductors | 22 | 6.6 million |
| Switchgear and RMUs | 13 | 3.7 million |
| Other | 7 | 0.5 million |
The largest awards
The largest awards in the data were TANESCO substation capacity projects in the first half of 2025: additional 33/11 kV and 66/33/11 kV transformers with switchgear (two awards of about 9 and 7.5 million US dollars), shunt reactors for voltage control (about 6.2 million), a 150 MVA 220/132/33 kV power transformer (about 4.1 million), and the replacement of 11 kV air-insulated switchgear at a substation (about 2.5 million).
What this means for buyers and suppliers
- Regional offices buy every month. TANESCO regional offices (Dodoma, Arusha, Kinondoni and others) issue many smaller awards for distribution transformers, cables, RMU spares and fuses. Local suppliers who win them need a manufacturer with stock-ready designs and fast documents.
- Substation upgrades are packaged. The large 2025 awards combine transformers, switchgear and installation. EPC contractors buy the equipment from manufacturers who can supply the whole package with type-test reports.
- Every shipment needs a TBS certificate. Transformers are on the TBS PVoC regulated list; government projects may apply for exemption in advance. See supplying Tanzania.
Method
We downloaded Tanzania’s public procurement releases published in the Open Contracting Data Standard (data.open-contracting.org, publication 152), kept awards whose tender title or description names transformers, switchgear, substations, ring main units, power cables or conductors, and removed services such as consultancy, security, building works and software. Values are award amounts in Tanzanian shillings converted at about 2,550 shillings per US dollar; they are approximate.
Source: Open Contracting Data Standard registry, Tanzania publication 152, accessed October 2026. Analysis by Trafovia. You may quote these figures with a link to this page.