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(NEWZIMBABWE) Mozambique to boost power supplies: ZESA

Mozambique to boost power supplies: ZESA
14/10/2012 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter

ZESA has reduced its debt with Mozambique’s Hydro Cahora Bassa from US$76 million to just under US$3 million over the last six months with officials saying this would help improve power supplies across the country.

Zimbabwe needs about 2,200 megawatts of electricity at peak consumption but ZESA generates just below 1,300 megawatts and plugs the gap with imports from the regional suppliers.

The utility has been forced to ration power to both domestic and commercial users after supplies from the region were cut over mounting debts.

However, ZESA spokesman, Fullard Gwasira said reduction the Hydro Cahora Bassa debt to about US$2.7 million would see the company boosting supplies. ZESA expects to pay up the debt by year end.

“Load-shedding is going to be signif­icantly reduced as Cahora Bassa have increased their supply to us as we have almost cleared the debt we owe them,” he said.
“The challenge we have is that we are splitting our resources between two equally important areas.

“First we have to pay for the electricity we are importing on a daily basis while sec­ondly some money also has to be chan­nelled towards clearing the debt.

“It’s a matter of tackling two issues at the same time, but we are confident that we would have cleared the debt by the end of the year.”

ZESA’s financial troubles have also been worsened by customers failing to pay their bills. The utility says it is owed about US$500 million.

“With the introduction of pre-paid meters, the era of a consumers using elec­tricity and then failing to honour their bills will be a thing of the past,” Gwasira said.

Energy Minister, Elton Mangoma, has also revealed that several new projects are also planned to help boost the country’s power generation capacity.

Early this year, Mangoma said a French consortium had been granted a licence to build a 2,000 MW thermal power plant in an investment worth about US$3 billion.

The power station will be situated at Binga’s Lusulu coal fields which are said to have an estimated 1,2 billion tonnes of coal reserves.

And last month, Chinese firm Guangdong Bureau of Coal Geology also announced plans to invest $3.5 billion to build a 1,200 megawatt thermal power plant.

Labels: ELTON MANGOMA, ENERGY, MOZAMBIQUE, ZESA

posted by MrK @ 4:06 PM