Energy deal close: Chasi

Harare Bureau

South Africa is considering a proposal put forward to increase power exports to Zimbabwe after high-level talks between the two countries, a senior Government official has revealed.

Energy and Power Development Minister Fortune Chasi said prospects of the resumption of power imports from South Africa will be announced soon, while South Africa’s Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe is set to table Zimbabwe’s power request before his Government.

Minister Chasi was recently in South Africa to finalise an electricity import deal with Eskom as Government moves to reduce power shortages.

His trip to South Africa follows fruitful discussions between President Mnangagwa and his South African counterpart, President Cyril Ramaphosa. Critically, the discussions come after Government paid US$10 million as part-payment of a US$33 million debt to South African power utility Eskom.

Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of the second batch of Zupco buses in Harare yesterday, Minister Chasi said he had fruitful deliberations with his South African counterpart, Minister Mantashe.

“In my discussion with Minister Mantashe, I underlined the importance that Zimbabwe places on the need for us to work out the debt that exists between us and also the need for us to be able to access power.

“I can confirm that initially we had our technical team who went to meet Eskom of South Africa. These are senior people from Zesa and also from the Ministry of Finance and my ministry and they did a lot of work.

“We discussed the issue of the debt that exists between us and also the dire situation of power in this country.”