PHILLIMON MHLANGA
GOVERNMENT will deploy significant funding to the country’s power utility, ZESA, as part of efforts to extricate the troubled company from a crisis, Business Times can report.
Zimbabwe has a daily peak demand of 1,800 megawatts (MW) but ZESA is currently generating less than 600MW from its five power stations.
This has resulted in local firms, who have now turned to diesel powered generators.
But the situation has been exacerbated by constraints in diesel supply.
Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said the government has decided to pursue a proactive strategy in helping ZESA.
Under the new plan, the government will inject fresh capital into ZESA in the first quarter of 2020.
Ncube, however, did not disclose the magnitude of the financial bailout to support ZESA.
But, wellplaced sources in the ministry told Business Times that the amount is significant.
“We are prioritising in this first quarter setting aside resources to capacitate ZESA to support the company directly to be able to import electricity directly from regional utilities,” Ncube said.
ZESA plunged into a crisis after production at Kariba South Hydroelectric Power Station was curtailed last year due to dwindling water levels in Kariba Dam.
The power plant, which has over the years been the biggest and reliable source of electricity for Zimbabwe, has capacity to generate 1 050 MW but is now generating less than 300MW.
Another problem is aging machinery at the country’s thermal power stations at Hwange, Bulawayo, Munyati and Harare.
ZESA’s legacy infrastructure needs to be replaced because it is operating beyond its maintenance window.
The machinery has been in operation for more than 25 years, which is past their design life span. As a result, the capacity has significantly been reduced.
Only life extending measures or replacement of equipment will help ramp up generation capacity. The impact of unstable electricity supply in Zimbabwe has come at a time when the government is on a drive to lure investment into the country.
But, there are fears that the power cuts will adversely affect investor confidence.
Consequently, consumers have been subjected to rolling blackouts lasting at least 18 hours daily due to low generation capacity locally and the power utility’s failure to procure adequate electricity from regional suppliers due to acute shortages of foreign currency.
This has inflicted huge damage to industries.
Manufacturing processes rely on electric machines that require power to perform the precise and repetitive tasks to increase production.
The chronic shortage of electricity is now starting to damage the economy.
Meanwhile, Ncube said the government will also accelerate the issuance of licences to independent power producers (IPPs).
The government, through the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority, has licenced more than 30 IPPs with a capacity to generate more than 5 000MW, but they have been struggling to get their proposed projects off the ground due to heavy capital outlays required.
Previously, the government expressed frustration over the failure by IPPs to implement their projects, years after they were licenced to construct power stations.
Now, the government wants to add more IPPs, hoping they will find partners to get their projects off the ground soon.
