Increased load shedding expected as winter farming takes priority: Minister Moyo

CLOUDINE MATOLA

Households should brace for intensified power outages as electricity will be redirected to support winter farming, Energy and Power Development Minister July Moyo has said

Currently, many households are enduring power cuts daily prompting some families to turn to solar energy as an alternative source.

Speaking at a post-Cabinet media briefing, Moyo said power will be prioritised for sectors critical to economic growth, with farmers assured of electricity supply for winter cropping.

“So the management of the power balance is what we must do in order to make sure that those who demand the power, particularly to drive the economy, get that power. And that means in some cases households might suffer a little bit,” Moyo said.

He assured the agricultural sector of sufficient power supply, citing improvements at Kariba Dam and the Hwange Power Station.

“This year, because of the Kariba Dam which is increasing and because of some of the work that is being done at Hwange 1 and 6 and also the firm supply that we are getting from Hwange 7 and 8, that power for agriculture will be assured. So we want to assure the farmers that—go and plough your winter cropping as indicated by the Minister of Agriculture—and we can assure them that there will be power available for that purpose,” he said.

Moyo added that the government aims to add 500 to 600 megawatts of irrigation power during the winter season if agricultural targets are met. However, he acknowledged that this would further increase national electricity demand.

While inflows at Victoria Falls have surged to 2,400 cubic metres per second—up from 707 cubic metres per second during the same period last year—and Kariba Dam levels have risen to 13.95% full from 13.45%, load shedding remains severe, especially for households.

“Obviously, this comes from the report that there are inflows at Victoria Falls, which have increased tremendously. Last year, it was at 707 cubic metres per second. It is now standing at 2,400 cubic metres per second. And that has increased water in the Kariba Dam.

“For the first time last week, we had a crossover. We started last year when Kariba was at 13.52% full. And this time, it’s at 13.73%. So we keep on being off. What it actually means to households is that at present, we suffer a lot of load shedding, both to industry and to households. The most affected, obviously, are households, because we try to make sure that the industries keep on running,” Moyo said.

As a result of persistent power shortages, several industries have adopted alternative power sources or begun importing electricity from neighbouring countries.

“Some of the industries have insulated themselves by having captive power-producing capacities, either using solar, or some are using thermal, and others are using mini hydros. Some have resorted to order power from countries outside directly to them and using ZESA for wheeling that power to their factories so that they can insulate themselves.

“But the households which have insulated themselves have had solar panels installed in their houses, and ZESA now is using that to attack those who install solar TVs to also net meters and send that power to the households.”

Moyo also explained that during daylight hours, load shedding is at its lowest due to contributions from solar, thermal, and hydroelectric sources. However, this varies with weather conditions.

“So during the day, that’s when we have the lowest load shedding, because we are using both solar and we are using thermal and/or hydro electricity supplied by ZESA. But you will see that in a case like yesterday, that solar was not very effective. So there was much more heavy load shedding because of those circumstances.

“Solar is that disadvantage, but of course it is an advantage that when the sun is shining, we have a lot of it. Right now we have about 96 megawatts of installed solar that has been given to us, but I know that a lot of households have not indicated to us how much solar they have put in their households,” he said.