adminHarare Bureau
Four South African financial institutions have expressed interest in funding Zimbabwe’s infrastructural projects. Finance and Economic Development Minister Patrick Chinamasa told the Zim-SA mini-investment conference yesterday that the Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA), Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and Transnet are considering funding some specific infrastructure projects.
“It was soon after our successful conduct of the harmonised elections in July 2013 that we received a letter from South Africa expressing South African companies’ willingness to fund and invest in our infrastructural projects.
“I then met my South African counterpart Minister Nhlanhla Nene and I was happy to have a meeting with him on the sidelines of the just-ended Sadc summit in Vic Falls. It was fruitful deliberation which has resulted in the South African delegation visiting here,” said Minister Chinamasa.
DBSA is already funding some projects in the country and these include the rehabilitation of the Plumtree-Mutare highway and it is also funding feasibility studies for Beitbridge-Chirundu highway.
DBSA co-finances, lead arranges, underwrites and advises on the funding of infrastructure and socio-economic projects in the region.
It also plays a multiple role of advisor, partner, implementer and integrator to mobilise finance and expertise for development projects.
South African investments continue to grow in almost all sectors of the Zimbabwean economy as witnessed by the recent partnership between TM and Pick ‘n’ Pay retail operators and the ongoing plans by McCormick to construct the mall of Zimbabwe in Borrowdale.
“We’ve seen that FDIs from South Africa have got footprints in almost all of Sadc countries and that Zimbabwe has certainly benefited from the initiatives of these FDIs,” said Minister Chinamasa.
He said the issue of electricity remains a challenge to investment as there is urgent need for action to address the prevailing power deficit.
Zimbabwe is currently experiencing a power deficit with daily electricity demand of 2,200MW against installed capacity of 1,100MW.
Minister Chinamasa said Zimbabwe is strategically located at the epicentre of the Southern African Power Pool transmission grid providing the necessary wheeling corridor for planned regional power generation projects.
He said the Bindura-Mutorashanga transmission which is going to involve the construction of a 80,2 km 400kv line and associated terminal equipment will cost $32 million.
The construction of the Alaska-Sherwood 160km 400kv line, substations and associated terminal equipment will cost $64 million.
Tokwe-Masvingo transmission line which is 132kv, 132kv substation and associated terminal equipment will cost about $12 million.
Minister Chinamasa said NRZ with financial support from DBSA conducted a study in 2012 which concluded that NRZ required priority investment of $442 million in the short term and $1,9 billion in the long run to rehabilitate and upgrade the railway network, signalling communications equipment as well as to acquire rolling stock.
He said various programmes and projects outlined in Zim-Asset require financing to the tune of $27 billion of which the infrastructure and utilities cluster will absorb the bulk of it, $14,4 billion.
Online Reporter