Online Reporter
Business Reporter
DISTRIBUTED Power Africa (Private) Limited (DPA) has applied for a license to construct and operate a 50-megawatt (MW) solar plant in Harare.
A notice issued by Econet InfraCo, the parent company of DPA, said the proposed solar project will be located at Godavery Farm in Hatfield suburb.
DPA is a leading pan-African renewable energy company specialising in solar energy solutions for commercial customers.
It was originally built on the Econet Group’s extensive experience operating power systems and battery backups for its mobile network base stations.
DPA now manages energy infrastructure across several African nations, including South Africa, Kenya, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Locally, its prominent commercial footprint includes major industrial installations such as the 1MW Schweppes Zimbabwe rooftop plant in Willowvale, a 1,8MW hybrid facility at Tanganda Tea’s Ratelshoek Estate in Chipinge, and various green energy projects for corporate clients like Delta Corporation and Stanbic Bank.
The proposed 50MW Godavery Farm development marks a significant scale-up for DPA into large, utility-scale grid supply, expanding its operations beyond traditional “behind-the-meter” commercial and industrial installations towards directly feeding the national electricity grid.
To integrate the new power stream into the national network, the project will require a substantial infrastructure buildout, including the construction of a 132/33kV substation on-site at the farm.
The green energy project will connect to the national grid via an approximately 9-kilometer, 132kV single-circuit “lynx” overhead transmission line, which is planned for construction.
This line will link the solar plant directly to a proposed new switching station situated along the existing Dema-Coleford 132kV transmission line.
As part of the statutory regulatory process, the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority has opened a 14-day window for public consultations, allowing interested stakeholders and residents to weigh in on the massive utility project.
Bongani Ndlovu