The Sunday Mail
Way forward
The quickest solution to power shortages lies in a cost-reflective tariff.
Kariba Hydro Station
Reliance on Kariba is not advisable because it is dependent on rainfall performance.
The lake level is currently at 18,27 percent full and without any meaningful rainfall in the catchment areas of the lake, there will soon be water rationing.
Imports
We have firm contract agreements with the following sources, whose capacities total 300MW:
- Eskom (South Africa): 100MW, but when SA is load shedding, this is reduced correspondingly.
- Zesco (Zambia): 100MW. This is an upfront payment import.
- HCB (Mozambique): 50MW
- EDM (Mozambique): 50MW
Additional non-firm power can be provided by the same sources.
Foreign currency received from exporting customers remains inadequate in lieu of the mandatory 60 percent/40 percent surrender requirements. The customers pay 60 percent in foreign currency and 40 percent in local currency. Unfortunately, it is a challenge to convert the 40 percent local currency to foreign currency. Further, the same foreign currency receipts also service repayments on other facilities like the Afreximbank facility and fund critical spares and foreign insurance, among other things.
Demand
The peak demand for 2022 was about 2 000MW, when we factor in the loads that were out due to faults and other technical issues. As we move out of the winter period, demand has dropped and is currently about 1 750MW.
Zimbabwe’s independent power producers (IPPs) contributed 98,51GigaWatt Hours (GWh) to the national grid in the first quarter of 2022 after a significant increase in output, representing 4 percent of the total.
The IPPs increased power production by 56 percent in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the previous period. This is attributed to commissioning of new generation and increased production activity.
The IPPs are contributing 98,51MW capacity to the 1 450MW being generated by Zimbabwe Power Company.
Mitigation
◆ Zesa has secured 300MW of power from EDM, HCB, Eskom and Zesco.
◆ Zesa has facilitated the creation of an Intensive Energy Users Group (EIUG), which is meant to procure its own power requirements from the region and from local suppliers. This is meant to remove pressure and risk of securing power from Zesa.
◆ Zesa continues to engage relevant Government ministries to have the company capacitated to raise foreign currency to pay for imports.
◆ Zesa continues to engage relevant Government ministries and the regulator to have the company capacitated to maintain a cost-reflective tariff and also maintain it. This will allow Zesa to pay for its obligations and not accumulate debt, and in the process become credible.
◆ Zesa is on a debt-collection drive to ensure it gets due payments in good time for power delivered to customers.
Vandalism
The national power utility is losing at least US$4 million per year to vandalism.
Of this figure, 30 percent is vandalism of copper cables, 30 percent vandalism of transformers and the remainder is vandalism of other accessories. In the first quarter of 2022, Zesa recorded losses of US$904 000, while the company recorded over 500 cases of vandalism. This marks a worrying increase in vandalism cases if you consider the 2021 figures, where over 1 200 cases were recorded during the year. The company is alive to the need to safeguard national infrastructure as this is key to national development and attainment of Vision 2030 goals. The company is, therefore, employing a host of mitigatory measures that include:
◆ Target hardening, which involves strengthening the security of electricity transformers.
◆ Lobbying of statutory amendment. This includes amendment of the Copper Control Act to include punitive sentences.
◆ Lobbying for a review of regulations on dealing in scrap metal, including withdrawal of export licences.
◆ Employment of technology in anti-vandalism drive, through surveillance systems, internet of things, starting with anti-intrusion technology, and joint anti-vandalism community engagement programmes, among others.
The Zesa stakeholder relations department was responding to questions from The Sunday Mail’s Senior Reporter Leroy Dzenga.
