Recently, a batch of 10-meter polygonal distribution steel poles manufactured by Milky Way Steel Poles has completed production and inspection and been shipped to Zambia. The delivered pole type matches the main-stream distribution-pole specification for the World-Bank-funded ESAP (Electricity Service Access Project). It brings Chinese-manufactured hardware for Southern-African inland grid upgrading and deepens economic-trade cooperation between China and Zambia in power infrastructure.
    Officials from Zambia’s Ministry of Energy have attended power-connection completion ceremonies for ESAP across multiple provinces. Implemented from 2021 to 2024 and financed by the World Bank, the project has a total investment of 36.8 million US dollars. It constructs and renovates medium- and low-voltage distribution lines, connecting a total of 25 892 rural and peri-urban households to the national grid, covering numerous remote villages in Central and Copperbelt Provinces. The project remedies gaps in Zambia’s rural power-grid infrastructure, reduces line losses, improves residents’ power-access conditions, and boosts local education, medical services and micro-small-business development. It serves as a key livelihood initiative to expand rural electricity coverage in Zambia。
    Zambia is mostly a high-land country with elevations of 1 000-1 600 meters, consisting of central high-land savanna, arid-hot western river valleys and rainy northern woodland zones. Local ZESCO distribution projects widely adopt 10-meter octagonal polygonal steel poles with 220-300 daN bending-moment rating, highly consistent with Milky Way’s 10-meter supply. Poles fit Zambia’s mainstream 11-33 kV distribution voltage. General-purpose poles adopt Q235B / Q355B steel with slip-joint and flange-based CKD split structures. Customized solutions for different operating conditions: design wind-speed 26-29 m/s for central high-land; wind-speed upgraded to 30-32 m/s for arid-windy western valleys with extra allowance for wind-sand abrasion. Reinforced high-moment special poles are deployed for angle and terminal positions.
    Products comply with IEC-60826 and ISO-1461 international standards. Production processes include laser cutting, polygonal bending and submerged-arc welding with non-destructive testing. Hot-dip-galvanized zinc coating ≥85 μm for high-land inland zones and 90-100 μm for wind-sand-heavy regions. All fasteners are grade-8.8 hot-dip-galvanized high-strength bolts. Earthing and cross-arm mounting holes are pre-fabricated in-factory. Each pole carries steel-stamp marking plus English-language labels, adapting to Zambia’s distinct wet-dry seasons, strong UV radiation and frequent thunder-storms on the plateau.
    Shipping and customs clearance follow full export requirements for land-locked Zambia. Poles are packed as CKD split components inside containers with separators to prevent galvanizing-layer damage during transit. Wooden packages carry valid IPPC-ISPM15 fumigation marks. Cargo sails from Chinese ports to Dar-es-Salaam Port, Tanzania, then transits by cross-border trucking to inland clearance points in Lusaka, Zambia, before final delivery to project sites. Before shipment, PVOC-COC pre-shipment conformity verification managed by ZABS is completed. Full documentation including material certificates, galvanizing test reports, welding NDT reports, commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of origin and English-language technical files are furnished to avoid detention, fines and demurrage and guarantee smooth customs release.
    The ESAP Electricity-Service-Access Project is a benchmark livelihood programme for raising rural electrification rates in Zambia. The 10-meter polygonal steel poles supplied by Milky Way Steel Poles are mass-deployed main-line equipment for this project, balancing structural performance, on-site installation convenience and local ZABS regulatory compliance. Going forward, Milky Way Steel Poles will further explore Southern-African overseas markets and deliver customized power-grid hardware to support Zambia’s progress toward universal electricity access.

To date, our products have been exported to more than 100 countries and regions as listed below:
Africa: Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Niger, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Guinea, Benin, Togo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mauritania, Gambia, Guinea‑Bissau, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Burundi, Djibouti, Seychelles.
Asia: Mongolia, Republic of Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Timor‑Leste, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Türkiye.
America: Canada, United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Cuba, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Oceania: Australia, New Zealand.
Europe: Sweden, United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Greece, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus.