Ministers refuse to settle bills

Energy and Power Development Minister Elton Mangoma revealed this when he appeared before the Committee on Mines and Energy while giving oral evidence on challenges being faced by the country in electricity generation.
“There are members of Cabinet who owe Zesa, there are senior members in the civil service who owe Zesa and there are MPs who owe Zesa.
“Last week I told my colleagues (in Cabinet) that unless they come up with firm plans on how they will pay they would be switched off,” he said.
Minister Mangoma said Zesa will not spare anyone irrespective of status as it moves to recover money it is owed.
“We will be switching off, this is a notice to them, there will be no sacred cows. That is the only way we will stop people from accumulating debts they cannot pay,” he said.
Committee chairman Cde Edward Chindori-Chininga, said they had information that a Manicaland politician owed $100 000 while another senior official in the ministry of Energy and Power Development owed $30 000.
“Senior civil servants and Cabinet members who are supposed to make decisions and policies owe Zesa.
“How then do they make the decisions that affect Zesa? You go on to disconnect electricity from people that owe little money and can genuinely not afford and leave these influential people,” Cde Chindori-Chininga said.
Zesa is owed at least $400 million by defaulting customers including Government departments.
Minister Mangoma said a potential investor intending to set up a power station with a generation capacity of 600MW had approached Government and an announcement will be made next week.
“There is someone who has come up and their application is being considered. They want to put up a 600MW plant.
“They have their plant and are ready to start shipping once a licence is granted. This is a strong prospect and I have seen their plant from pictures and designs from pictures.
“I am hoping that their licence can be granted either this week or early next week,” Minister Mangoma said.
He said the company would set up a thermal power station.
The minister said they had also received 11 expressions of interest from companies that intend to expand both Hwange and Kariba Power stations with the winner expected to be announced around July once the adjudication process has been completed.
He said drilling for methane gas will commence soon with a 5MW power station set to be constructed if the exploration proves successful.
Minister Mangoma said Zesa’s long-term debt stood at $800 million and the power utility cannot service it.