eBusiness Weekly
Oliver Kazunga
ZESA says it is embarking on various initiatives to boost power supply in line with the anticipated 3 500MW national demand by 2025 required to support the country’s various economic development projects.
At present, Zimbabwe’s national demand stands at 1 700MW but the country’s power utility through its subsidiary, the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC), is producing below the current demand.
This is on account of constant breakdowns of antiquated equipment at some of the power stations.
In March 2018, President Mnangagwa commissioned the US$533 million Kariba South expansion project whose installed capacity improved to 1 050MW but generation at the power plant was subdued due to limited water allocations by the Zambezi River Authority owing to low dam levels at Kariba.
Addressing journalists soon after the signing ceremony of a joint venture agreement between, ZETDC and Dinson Iron and Steel Company (Disco) for the construction of a 400KiloVolt transmission power line from Sherwood in Kwekwe to Manhize area in Mvuma where a new and Africa’s largest integrated steel manufacturing plant is being built, the power utility’s managing director Engineer Howard Choga said:
“The demand for electricity, which we need as a country by 2025 is in the order of 3 500MW in addition to the current 1 700MW.
“What this means is that we have to redouble our efforts to look for power which we are already doing to ensure that we support the development of the economy.
“To supply this power requirement we know we have our star projects in generation.
“One is the Hwange 7 and 8 which is going to bring in 600MW by the third quarter of 2023. We are also rehabilitating Units 1 to 6 at Hwange and we have already secured financing from Exim Bank of India.”
When the extension is complete, Hwange will have an installed capacity of 1520MW up from the current 920MW.
Last year, India Exim Bank was reported to have approved a US$310 million loan facility to finance the extension of lifespan of Zimbabwe’s largest coal-fired power plant, Hwange Thermal Power Station that has outlived its 25-year lifespan.
The six units at the thermal power plant were commissioned between 1983 and 1987.
“We have solar projects which we estimate to be to the tune of 700MW, which we are structuring at the moment with a view to have implemented them within NDS1 (National Development Strategy 1),” he said, adding that the small thermal power stations (Harare, Munyati and Bulawayo) are under rehabilitation.
Due to aging equipment, Bulawayo Thermal Power Station, which is one of the oldest in the country having been commissioned between 1947 and 1957 as an undertaking by the Municipality of Bulawayo with an initial 120MW installed capacity was also expected to undergo repowering by an Indian contractor.
In 2015, the Government secured the initial funding pledge of US$87 million from Exim Bank of India to implement the repowering programme with an additional US$23 million package later secured to make the total funding package of US$110 million.
Eng Choga said in the region, the power utility has also signed agreements in Zambia and Mozambique for the supply of 300MW.
“We are also assisting in the development of power projects especially in Mozambique which will see us being able to offtake the output from those projects within the medium-term which is three to five years and this is also how we are growing to meet the growing demand.
“So the power supply for the country is actually safe in the sense that Zesa is leaving no stone unturned to be able to supply the power that is demanded,” he said.
As the country’s power utility, Eng Choga said Zesa, is always able to see the performance of Government programmes through the way electricity is demanded.
“In general as at last year, we had received applications for connection to the tune of 2 100MW for direct mining projects.
“Subsequent investments to support the mining ventures can also take us a further 500MW plus or minus and also housing which we are doing through partnerships with other players especially Rwanda Energy Group, we have got 305 000 applications which we have counted in our database that require connection,” said the ZETDC boss.
He said it was through investment projects such as the Disco Iron and Steel manufacturing plant that has come into the economy demanding 500MW, a reflection that economic productivity will improve.
The steel plant’s first blast furnace is expected to come on board in September next year.
At present, ZETDC is supplying 100MW to the mining and iron and steel complexes that Disco is constructing in Manhize. And Disco would want to ramp up the demand for electricity from 100MW to 500MW within the next three years. Through numbers, a demand of 500MW is almost a third of the national demand.
“Zimbabwe is a 1 700MW country with an economy that consumes that much at peak normally during a winter season, so getting a client in one place year is going to consume 500MW is an absolute milestone for the country and for Zesa in particular.
“What this means is that we have to redouble our efforts to look for power which we are already doing to ensure that we support the development of the economy,” he said.
