Online Reporter
Tanyaradzwa Rusike
THE repowering of six old units at the Hwange Thermal Power Station and construction of four new ones, which will commence this year to improve the country’s power generation, will be fast-tracked, India’s Ambassador to Zimbabwe Mr Bramha Kumar has said.
India’s power generation firm Jindal Steel & Power has been contracted by the Government to spearhead the project.
The exercise will add 2 000 megawatts (MW) of power to the grid, with 800MW coming from refurbishing the old units and 1 200MW from four new units (300MW each).
Expected to be completed in phases within 36 to 48 months, the project involves replacing outdated turbines, generators and other components with new technology.
Upon completion, the power station will have advanced control systems to optimise operations, reduce energy consumption and improve efficiency.
“As per my discussion with senior authorities, the discussions are on track. We should be able to see the declaration this year. Most importantly, this project will be an example of fast-track implementation,” Ambassador Kumar told The Sunday Mail.
“Jindal Steel & Power signed agreements with Zesa Holdings in August 2024 for an increase of electricity production at Hwange Power Station by 2 000MW over the next few years.
This means 800 megawatts will come from the refurbishment of Hwange Units 1 to 6 and 1 200 megawatts by adding four new units to Hwange Power Station.”
Zimbabwe and India are working on increasing trade cooperation between the two countries.
According to Ambassador Kumar, New Delhi and Harare have agreed to revive their ministerial Joint Commission meeting.
“There has been an understanding to revive the Joint Commission meeting headed by ministers between India and Zimbabwe. There is some good progress on that side.
“Last year, the Joint Trade Committee meeting took place in May and agreed on some of the important action in terms of healthcare, pharmaceutical, agriculture, mining sector, engineering and infrastructure and connectivity,” he said.
“I am hopeful that some new MoUs (memorandums of understanding) between the private sector will also take place in various areas. Like earlier, the upcoming Confederation of Indian Industry India-Africa Conclave will add value to our ongoing momentum. The outlook for enhancing bilateral trade and commerce appears bright.”
The Hwange Thermal Power Station’s six units were initially commissioned between 1983 and 1989.
Over the years, they have suffered from technical faults due to ageing.
Refurbishment is expected to extend their life by 15 to 20 years.
As of Thursday evening, Zimbabwe was producing 1 330MW, with Hwange topping, at 1 083MW.
Kariba had an output of 185MW, whilst independent power producers contributed 62MW.
Zesa executive chairperson Dr Sydney Gata recently stated that the investment in the six units would be one of the largest in the country, driving positive growth across all economic sectors.
