HPS expansion financial closure signing in December

Business Reporter
THE Government will next month sign a financial closure with Chinese firm, Sino Hydro paving the way for the resumption of the estimated $1,5 billion Hwange Power Station (HPS) expansion project.

Speaking to Sunday News Business after the commissioning of Bulawayo Criterion Water Works and Mpopoma sub-stations by Energy and Power Development Minister Samuel Undenge, the Ministry’s secretary, Mr Partson Mbiriri said Government and Sino Hydro had concluded negotiations pertaining to the expansion work to be carried out at HPS.

Sino Hydro experts were already on site having been engaged by the Ministry of Energy and Power Development to carry out feasibility studies and geological survey in anticipation of the finalisation of the financial aspects of the project between the two parties (Government and Sino Hydro) before the commencement of the expansion work.

“We are close to financial closure. We think it will be possible to sign off in the first week of December. So we are excited about that prospect. It’s a four-year project so we are looking at 2019 for the project to come to life,” Mr Mbiriri said.
HPS currently has six units, four units of 120 megawatts (MW) each and two units of 220 MW each with the additional units, seven and six expected to generate 300 MW each.

The power station is designed to generate 930 MW but Government target to have it to produce 750 MW.

HPS was built in two stages with construction of stage one commencing in 1973, but was suspended in 1975 due to economic sanctions imposed on then Rhodesia. The 4 x 120MW units were commissioned between 1983 and 1986 and the 2 x 220MW were commissioned in 1986 and 1987.

The expansion of HPS is part of Government’s efforts to improve power generation in the country.

Zimbabwe is experiencing a power deficit, with daily electricity of demand of 2 200 MW against an installed capacity of 1 100MW and the Government has encouraged independent private producers (IPPs) to step in to cover the shortfall.
To date the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority has licensed more than 20 IPPs with a combined capacity of producing up to 5 000 MW.

However, the country’s generation capacity has taken a knock, with the Kariba South Hydro Power Station slashing production by over 50 percent to 475 megawatts (MW), from 750MW.