Introduction
Zimbabwe
is
facing
a
serious
energy
crisis
that
has
resulted
in
long
hours
of
load
shedding,
sometimes
as
long
as
16
hours
a
day.
The
country’s
energy
demands
at
present
are
estimated
at
4000
megawatts
[MW]
of
electricity
whereas
we
currently
produce
only
about
1400
MW.
This
is
unsustainable
and
many
households
and
industries
are
now
turning
to
their
own
private
sources
of
energy
like
solar
plants,
diesel
generators
and
windmills.
Poor
working-class
and
peasant
families,
who
cannot
afford
these
things,
are
bearing
the
brunt
of
the
energy
crisis,
but
everyone
is
suffering
because
electricity
generated
from
private
sources
is
generally
more
expensive
than
electricity
from
the
national
grid,
and
goods
produced
using
privately
generated
electricity
are
correspondingly
more
expensive.
The
current
energy
mix
Zimbabwe
gets
its
electricity
from
several
sources.
Hydro-electric
Power
The
country
currently
has
two
hydro-electric
power
stations
built
on
the
Kariba
Dam
–
Kariba
North
and
Kariba
South.
They
have
a
combined
output
of
1200
MW
but
the
current
output
is
less
than
a
quarter
because
of
breakdowns,
obsolete
equipment
and,
in
recent
years,
low
levels
of
water
in
the
dam
for
electricity
generation.
Private
mini-hydros
There
are
several
small
hydro-electric
power
stations
across
the
country
with
outputs
ranging
from
2
MW
to
5
MW.
They
are
however
for
the
use
of
their
private
owners,
though
they
re-channel
excess
power
into
the
national
grid.
Thermal
Power
Stations
Zimbabwe
potentially
has
four
thermal
power
stations:
Hwange,
Munyati,
Bulawayo
and
Harare.
Hwange
has
the
largest
output
at
around
600
MW
after
its
recent
refurbishment,
which
was
paid
for
by
a
Chinese
loan
[increasing
our
national
debt].
Munyati,
Bulawayo
and
Harare
power
stations
still
need
to
be
refurbished
before
they
can
contribute
anything
to
the
national
power
grid.
Dema
Diesel
Power
Plant
The
US$200
million-dollar
Dema
Diesel
power
plant
remains
unused
after
being
commissioned
in
2016.
Many
doubted
the
wisdom
of
setting
up
a
diesel
power
plant,
which
is
expensive
to
run,
at
a
time
when
Zimbabwe
was
struggling
to
import
fuel.
Solar
farms
The
Zimbabwe
Electricity
Supply
Authority
[ZESA]
appointed
a
local
company,
Intratek
Zimbabwe
headed
by
Mr
Wicknell
Chivhayo,
to
set
up
a
US$100
million
solar
farm
project
at
Gwanda.
The
feasibility
of
the
project
is
still
being
assessed
yet
the
government
has
already
paid
Intratek
US$5
million
in
advance.
The
project
is
riddled
in
legal
wrangles
after
ZESA
tried
to
cancel
the
contract.
Private
players
are
setting
up
solar
farms
like
the
one
in
Nyabira
set
up
by
Centragrid
and
the
one
in
Selous
established
by
Zimplats.
Econet
through
its
subsidiary,
DPA,
has
started
putting
solar
panels
on
roofs
of
large
warehouses
for
private
energy
use.
Power
imports
Zimbabwe
imports
power
from
DRC’s
SNEL,
Mozambique’s
HCB
and
South
Africa’s
Eskom,
but
our
ability
to
continue
these
imports
has
been
imperilled
by
swelling
debts
owed
by
ZESA
to
the
three
power
companies.
The
foreign
currency
scarcity
has
exacerbated
the
situation
as
it
can
no
longer
enjoy
power
on
debt,
especially
when
ZESA’s
and
country’s
financial
stability
is
perilous.
New
investments
into
energy
Despite
the
efforts
mentioned
above,
Zimbabwe
is
still
facing
an
acute
energy
crisis
and
new
sources
of
energy
have
to
be
found
urgently.
Possible
sources
include
the
Batoka
Gorge
Hydroelectric
Project.
More
solar
farms
could
be
established
as
Zimbabwe
has
fair
warm
weather
for
most
of
the
year.
Incentives
could
be
put
in
place
to
encourage
electricity
consumers,
both
commercial
and
domestic,
to
switch
to
the
use
of
solar.
A
New
Energy
Policy
Zimbabwe
needs
a
new
comprehensive
energy
policy
that
looks
at
the
energy
mix
and
funding
mechanisms.
Above
all
the
policy
should
include
a
transition
to
green
energy
with
clear
time-lines
drawn
up
in
the
light
of
the
country’s
economic
and
social
context.
The
policy
should
be
drawn
up
so
as
to
involve
all
stakeholders
–
domestic
consumers,
industrial
consumers,
funders,
climate
change
activists
and
the
government.
Most
multilateral
funding
partners
are
now
inclined
to
finance
clean
energy,
that
is
hydroelectric
power
stations,
solar
farms
and
wind
power.
Zimbabwe
however
should
remain
alive
to
the
fact
that
the
country
still
has
extensive
reserves
of
coal
that
can
be
used
cheaply
to
run
thermal
power
stations.
This
should
be
only
a
pro
tem
solution
as
coal
power
is
very
polluting. As
to
financing,
we
should
look
at
opportunities
for
domestic
resource
mobilisation,
including
the
use
of
pension
funds,
because
such
national
projects
are
spurs
to
economic
growth.
Conclusion
Zimbabwe
will
need
as
much
as
US$10
billion
to
invest
in
energy
production
over
the
next
decade
to
avert
the
ongoing
energy
crisis.
In
establishing
new
energy
projects
we
should
re-examine
our
energy
mix
and
adopt
measures
to
enhance
energy
transition.
The
development
of
a
new
energy
policy
should
be
framed
from
an
all
stakeholders’
approach
to
gain
support
from
all
players.
Veritas
makes
every
effort
to
ensure
reliable
information,
but
cannot
take
legal
responsibility
for
information
supplied.
Post
published
in:
Featured