Zimbabwe will need to invest up to US$10 billion to raise power production to meet domestic demand, a new study by Veritas has revealed, warning that the poor remain largely excluded from access to electricity It is a staggering bill for a country already weighed down by a US$21,5 billion debt — nearly half of its US$44 billion gross domestic product — and struggling to honour repayments Finance minister Mthuli Ncube recently said token payments to creditors, including the World Bank and the Paris Club, would continue but this won’t be at a pace required for lenders to unlock new debts for infrastructural projects including power plants In its analysis, Veritas said while corporations and the affluent were spending heavily on off-grid solutions, “peasants and the working class were bearing the brunt” of the electricity shortages
Power shortages have unsettled the economy since 2007, when output plunged below demand The deficit worsened after Southern African Power Pool members began ring-fencing electricity for their own economies Zimbabwe still imports from regional utilities, but Parliament disclosed earlier this year that Zesa Holdings was paradoxically exporting part of its limited generation — exports seen as critical to service debts, including those from recent China-backed refurbishments “Zimbabwe will need as much as US$10 billion to invest in energy production over the next decade to avert the ongoing energy crisis,” Veritas said
The think-tank urged a review of the country’s energy mix, an inclusive policy framework, and measures to accelerate the energy transition Current demand is estimated at 4 000 MW, yet generation is only about 1 400 MW — a gap forcing many industries and households into costly private solutions such as solar plants, diesel generators, and windmills Veritas raised concerns over the plight of those unable to afford these alternatives “Poor working-class and peasant families, who cannot afford these things, are bearing the brunt of the energy crisis,” the report said
Most of Zimbabwe’s power comes from the 1 050 MW Kariba South hydropower plant, refurbished in 2018 with US$553 million in Chinese funding, and the Hwange thermal station, upgraded in 2023 at a cost of US$1,5 billion, also financed by China Kariba has faced challenges from prolonged droughts in the Zambezi River basin, leaving the country heavily reliant on about 600 MW from Hwange’s two new units refurbished under the Chinese programme — still far short of requirements Water levels at Kariba improved this year after good rains Source: The Standard Zimbabwe
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Source: Thestandard
