Zimbabwe’s emerging power projects have the potential to
earn at least US$3 billion in annual energy exports from the current position
of energy insufficiency, Mines and Mining Development Minister Winston Chitando
has said.
Minister Chitando said this when he addressed a news
conference in Harare yesterday to give a summation of President Mnangagwa’s
two-day working visits of coal mining and power generation projects in Hwange
earlier this month.
Speaking in Hwange during the visit, President Mnangagwa
said he had been impressed by work on the ground which he said will lead
Zimbabwe not only to achieve energy self-sufficiency, but also into being an
energy exporter.
Power generation projects visited by President Mnangagwa in
Hwange include Zambezi Gas and Coal Mine which is envisaged to produce 750
Megawatts (MW) on completion.
Also working on power generating projects are Western Areas
(600MW), Jinan (600MW), Tsingshan (100MW) and Zimbabwe Zhongxin Electrical
Energy (430MW).
Most of these projects are expected to start running from
2023. Also on the way is a coal bed methane (CBM) power plant for which the
Government expects to sign a deal for the construction of a 450MW power station
before the end of August.
Plans are also at an advanced stage for the establishment
of a 2 100MW power station in Binga, but modalities of this project are still
being worked.
“In addition to that (power projects in Hwange), there will
be an agreement that will be signed before the end of August for a CBM power
plant which will, when operational, generate 450 MW of electricity,” said
Minister Chitando.
“There are plans for the establishment of a 2 100MW power
station in Binga. The combined projects, the ones visited by His Excellency (in
Hwange) and the other ones (being worked on) will give us 5 030MW.
“Now, if you look at it from a perspective that with Hwange
7 and 8 coming on stream and an element that various mining companies are
undertaking a number of solar interventions which when fully rolled out will
result in over 500MW being added into the grid.
“So we are looking at 5 030MW purely being electricity for
export. So if one assumes a tariff of 7 US cents per kilowatt hour (kwh) it
means we are looking at an electricity export industry of US$3 billion when
fully rolled out,” said Minister Chitando.
Government’s calculations premised on 7 US cents kwh are
rather conservative considering the energy deficit that is expected to hit
Southern Africa in the medium to long-term.
Already South Africa, the region’s economic and industrial
powerhouse, is experiencing power outages, a situation that is expected to push
power prices up.
The region is also experiencing a steady increase in
industrial productivity which has seen the World Bank projecting demand for
electricity to increase by 40 percent over the next 10 years.
SADC member states, among other strategies, are being
encouraged to cooperate on electricity usage and development and promote power
pooling and trade. Herald
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