Category: Energy
Sun Exchange’s US$1.4 mil crowdfunded solar project in Marondera goes live!
Sun Exchange, the global solar leasing platform that enables anyone, anywhere to own and earn income from solar assets in emerging markets, today announced the 510 kWp + 1MWh solar-plus-storage installation to power Zimbabwean agriculture leader, Nhimbe Fresh, has started generating electricity. Sun Exchange previously completed the crowdsale for the project, with approximately $1.4 million […]
UN approves Zimbabwe’s US$45 mil renewable energy programme
The United Nations (UN) SDG-Fund has approved Zimbabwe’s US$45 Million programme on catalysing investments in Renewable Energy (RE) for the acceleration of the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the country. The UN SDG-Fund is contributing US$10 Million to the programme whilst the Government of Zimbabwe through the Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe […]
ZESA resumes rehabilitation work at Kariba Power Station
The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) has, in a statement, said that it has resumed work at the Kariba South Hydro Power Station after suspending work to reduce load shedding over the festive season. ZESA statement reads as follows: RESUMPTION OF KARIBA SOUTH HYDROPOWER STATION DAM WALL REHABILITATION WORKS ZESA Holdings would like to advise […]
ZESA’s token purchase platform is going to be down tomorrow till the new year
The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) has, in a press release, said that prepaid token purchases are going to be down from the 31st of December 2021 to January 1st 2022. ZESA’s statement reads as follows: NOTICE ON UNAVAILABILITY OF THE PREPAID ELECTRICITY VENDING SYSTEM DUE TO SCHEDULED ANNUAL MAINTENANCE ZESA Holdings would like to […]
ZESA brings back 3 units at Kariba, power output up by 345MW for the festive season
The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Company (ZESA) has announced that it has brought three units at the Kariba Power Station that were offline back into service. The units were down because of maintenance that was being undertaken on the dam wall. ZESA also says that this measure was to ease load shedding during the festive period. […]
Cassava Technologies’ solar subsidiary to power Africa Data Centres’ SA facilities
Africa Data Centres has appointed Distributed Power Technologies (formerly Distributed Power Africa DPA) to provide renewable solar energy and storage solutions for its data centres across South Africa. The partnership will begin with the deployment of renewable energy generation facilities to meet the more than 10 MW power requirements at Africa Data Centres’ Cape Town […]
ZESA gets a US$110 mil loan to improve tariff collection
The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC), a subsidiary of ZESA Holdings, was the beneficiary of a US$110.4 million loan from Afreximbank. The loan which was the largest part of a total allocation of US$188,600,000 to three other local companies (CABS, CBZ and ZB Bank) was confirmed at the Intra-African Trade Fair that happened […]
Electricity supply stabilising says Ministry of Energy
Last week the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) said that there was a major technical fault at the Hwange Power Station that was set to cause load shedding nationwide. In a follow up to that announcement the Ministry of Energy has released a statement saying that Units at Hwange are coming back online and the […]
ZESA has a technical fault Hwange but they aren’t the only power utility facing challenges
The Zimbabwe Electricity Power Supply Authority (ZESA) has announced that there is yet another fault at the Hwange Power Station that will be causing load shedding in the country. ZESA statement reads as follows ZESA HOLDINGS (PVT) LTD POWER SUPPLY UPDATE ZESA Holdings would like to advise its valued customers countrywide that there is limited […]
[Pics] Old Mutual’s US$2.5 million, 0.64MW solar plant
Old Mutual yesterday launched a 0.64MW Solar plant for its Business Park in Harare. The official opening of the plant was attended by Old Mutual’s higherups and Minister for Energy Soda Zhemu. The facility is quite impressive and produces more electricity than Old Mutual will ever need. The excess will be shifted to the national […]
ZPC Q3 power column: Kariba accounting for 64% of the nation’s electricity
The Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) has released the Q3 2021 power column which denotes in some detail electricity generation in the country’s major plants. The ZPC Q3 2021 report reads as follows: ZPC noted general improvement in generation in the 3rd quarter of 2021, after having sent out a total of 2,203GWh, thereby surpassing its […]
The rainy season is upon us: here are the precautions ZESA wants you to take
It’s the time of year again when the skies open up and I am sure we are all thankful because the heat was getting unbearable. However, as we all know the prevailing weather doesn’t mix well with electricity, so ZESA has put out a circular on the precautions you need to take. The statement is […]
Govt is negotiating new electricity import deals, expect another tariff hike
Minister for Energy and Power Development Zhemu Soda has said that they are negotiating electricity import deals with Mozambique and Zambia that could amount to an additional 280MW. Zimbabwe’s power generation capacity has been brought into question year on year. It seems like there is always an issue at Hwange that results in nationwide load-shedding. […]
Govt signs agreement for an electricity audit
The Ministry of Energy and Power Development ministry has signed an agreement with Sustainable Climate Action Trust (SCAT) for the proposed implementation of an electricity or energy audit. What is an energy audit So an electricity or energy audit is essentially an analysis of the possibilities of reducing the energy consumption by electrical appliances. If […]
Crowd-based solar startup Sun Exchange secures US$2.5 million
Sun Exchange, a crowd-based global solar leasing platform, today announced it has secured $2.5 million in convertible note financing from ARPF, a Mauritian private equity fund advised by London-based ARCH Emerging Markets Partners Limited (ARCH). This follows the company’s closing a $4 million Series A funding round in 2020, led by a $3 million investment […]
46% of Zimbabwean electricity users have solar as main source
We continue with the findings in the 2020 ICT Access by Households and Use by Individuals Survey by ZIMSTAT. The survey found that 68.9% of Zimbabweans have access to electricity, up from 60.1% in 2014. 68.9% seems too high, doesn’t it? After all, the reports we have seen over the years all claim that only […]
Local startup pitches drone use to ZESA and Rwanda Energy
Drones or unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have really come to the fore worldwide with their versatility and numerous use cases that have increased efficiency in a number of industries. Locally, Tawanda Chihambakwe has been at the front lines of this effort. For anyone who might not know who he is, Tawanda is a licenced drone […]
ZESA’s power import solution is not sustainable
Early this week ZESA again sparked outrage when they announced that they were introducing 12-hour load-shedding with immediate effect. The reason we got from them is the one we have been given so many times before we now know it by heart. ZESA’s subsidiary ZPC is generating so little power it’s not enough to meet […]
“Bring back Chibabest”, Angry Zimbabweans react to ZESA’s 12-hour load-shedding schedule
Zimbabwe is one of those countries in which the citizens seem to be living in a twisted horror version of Groundhog Day. The same mundane problems keep happening over and over again and it seems our lives are on repeat. One of those repetitive nightmares is load-shedding and despite the winning and excuses ZESA and […]
ZESA 12-hour load shedding timetable
Below is the timetable for the 12-hour load shedding that ZESA is undertaking due to reduced output at both the Kariba and Hwange Power Stations. Harare load shedding time table DAY MORNING PEAK EVENING PEAK MONDAY First areas to be affected H2, H4, H5, H6, H7, H8, H10, H14 H15, H16, H18, H21, H23, H24, […]
Brace yourselves for 12-hour load shedding
The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) has announced that we should expect 12-hour load shedding due to diminished output at Hwange and Kariba power stations. The statement from the ZETDC reads as follows: The ZETDC (Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company) is experiencing a power shortfall due to generation constraints at Hwange Power […]
Two big problems with ZESA’s net metering program
Last year, then Minister for Energy Fortune Chasi announced in a tweet that ZESA was undertaking a solar net metering program. The system would allow those who wanted to participate a way of supplementing the electricity shortfall in the country by feeding excess power they made from their private solar onto the national grid. The […]
ZERA now controls the price of LP Gas, here are the current prices
The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) now controls the prices of LP Gas just like they do with fuel and ZESA tariffs. ZERA is empowered to do so under Section 54 of the Petroleum Act as refined by Statutory 90 of 2021. According to the Statutory Instrument, ZERA can review the monthly prices of fuel […]
Shoprite stores SA appoints Econet subsidiary to install solar
Some months ago, the Econet founder Strive Masiyiwa expressed his view that DPA, a subsidiary of the Econet group would grow to be bigger than its other sister companies notably Liquid and Econet Wireless (the telco). Looks like DPA (Distributed Power Africa) is energised to do exactly that. Deal with Shoprite The solar company has […]
ZESA: Fault at Hwange Power Station to cause load shedding
The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) has put out a notice to the nation concerning a fault at the Hwange Power Plant that will limit power supply (thus resulting in load shedding). ZESA’s statement on the Hwange fault reads as follows: POWER SUPPLY UPDATE ZESA Holdings would like to advise its valued customers countrywide that […]
ZESA to compensate for damages caused by power surges
The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) will now compensate customers who suffer damages from power surges. The news comes by way of Minister for Energy Zhemu Soda, who in an interview with The Sunday Mail Business said the following: “There is an insurance policy to cover for such losses and a process of validation will […]
ZERA calls for anyone involved in the electric vehicle industry to join registry
The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) released a statement calling on anyone participating in the electric vehicle market to join a registry that will allow the authority to disseminate industry information. ZERA’s statement reads as follows : PUBLIC NOTICE Provisional Registration of Electric Vehicle and Charging Station Importers, Dealers, Technicians and Charging Station Installers The […]
Econet’s solar company DPA has secured a deal with Total to power its service stations
Econet Group’s solar subsidiary Distributed Power Africa (DPA) has announced that it has secured a deal with Total Zimbabwe to install solar panels at 15 of its service stations. “We are excited that businesses are taking such big steps towards adopting renewable energy, and we look forward to a great collaboration with Total Zimbabwe as […]
Econet subsidiary DPA partners with Huawei on battery technology
Distributed Power Africa (DPA) has partnered up with Huawei Technologies to deliver the latter’s Smart Energy Fusion solution to be used in hybrid solar solutions for the African market. The partnership will increase and enhance DPA’s product offering by providing improved storage and the company hopes this will increase the uptake of their reliable commercial […]
ZESA tariffs are expected to keep going up
It looks like the 30% increase to everyone electricity bill is but one of more we will see this year. According to Minister for Energy Zhemu Soda ZESA tariffs are going to keep going up. “In order for us to achieve what we are envisioning, that is to provide adequate power and sustainable electricity, there […]