- International news agency Bloomberg has reported that Zimbabwe has settled its debt with South Africa’s state owned energy utility, Eskom.
- Zimbabwe has paid US 890 000, the final instalment of a total of US 33 million that was owed to Eskom.
“We will now have to re-engage for additional power supplies,” Fortune Chasi, Zimbabwe’s energy minister told Bloomberg by phone yesterday. “Our attention will now turn to settling our debt with Mozambique.”
Zimbabwe has managed to settle the debt to Eskom on the back of a US100 million loan from Afreximbank. Read more
Zimbabwe’s energy sector is in meltdown largely due to corruption, mismanagement and a lack of maintenance. Read more
The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission & Distribution Company (ZETDC) implemented a wide scale load shedding programme in May 2019 plunging the country into darkness. The country has been forced to cut power generation at their Kariba Dam power plant due to low water levels. The dam, on the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia, is only 34% full and cannot generate electricity at optimal capacity. The utility is also facing generation constraints at Hwange Power Station.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
