adminVusumuzi Dube and Tinomuda Chakanyuka Sunday News Reporters
BULAWAYO City Council (BCC) is splashing about 300 litres of diesel worth about $400 daily to operate a generator which powers Tower Block and Revenue Hall which were switched off by the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) over unpaid electricity bills in 2010. Rough calculations by Sunday News have shown that Bulawayo City Council is using about $101 376 annually on fuel for the generator, translating to about $405 405 for the past four years that the local authority has been without electricity.
The local authority’s electricity bill is estimated to have ballooned to around $46 million. Council officials were not forthcoming in revealing the actual figure, claiming that “the matter is between the two organisations and not subject to third parties”.
Acting Town Clerk Dr Zanele Hwalima last week conceded, during a media briefing, that the local authority was incurring huge costs by using a generator to power Tower Block and Revenue Hall, noting that there was a need to come up a cheaper alternative.
“Obviously the situation at Tower Block where we are having to use a generator is not what we wish for. In an environment where we are talking about sustainable use of energy using a generator is definitely not ideal. We need to start exploring other cheaper alternative sources of power,” she said.
The local authority is using a Perkins 300 diesel only generator, which, according to its manufacturers has an apparent power of 300 Kilovolt amps and standby of 330 kilovolt amps. It has an electricity potential of 400/230 voltage generators at its prime.
When operating at 50 percent capacity, the generator uses 40 litres an hour and 58 litres an hour when operating at 75 capacity, while its consumption rate goes up to 75 litres per hour when it is at 100 percent capacity.
At 110 percent capacity it gobbles 84 litres an hour.
Assuming that BCC uses the generator at 50 percent capacity, the local authority pays about $52,80 an hour for diesel which costs about $1,32 a litre.
This translates to about $422,40 in the eight working hours daily, and about $2 112 for the five working days in a week.
In a month the local authority is estimated to be parting with $8 448 towards diesel costs, which in a year translates to about $101 376.
The figure could however be much higher when maintenance costs are factored in.
BCC Senior Public Relations Officer Mrs Nesisa Mpofu said that the local authority was using $85 604 worth of diesel every year for the generator to power the two buildings.
She, however, refused to discuss the debt the local authority owes to Zesa and other possible cheaper options that the local could use to power the two buildings.
“The cost of running the generator at Tower Block cost $85 604 in 2014, it should be noted that the high electricity bill that the city of Bulawayo owes Zesa is for the pumping of water supplies from our various reservoirs and water treatment plants.
“Noting the importance of electricity at these plants, Zesa thus switched off electricity supplies to municipal buildings so that the residents are not affected and we still ensure continuous supply of water, we encourage residents to also meet the city of Bulawayo halfway by clearing their outstanding bills to enable us to also clear our debts,” said Mrs Mpofu.
Efforts to get a comment from Zesa spokesperson Mr Fullard Gwasira were, however, fruitless as his mobile phone went unanswered but a Zesa official who preferred anonymity confirmed that the two institutions had reached a deadlock and Zesa was considering disconnecting more council facilities.
“I think the fact that the council is now relying on the use of generators, which by far are more expensive, proves that maybe they are not serious in settling what they owe hence the possibility of more facilities to be disconnected but discussions between the two institutions are still ongoing,” said the official.
The cash strapped local authority has been subject to serious financial problems and at one point was faced with the possibilities of losing the Tower Block and Revenue Hall after Kingdom Bank demanded title deeds as the local authority had failed to pay off a $5,7 million loan advanced for payment of workers’ salaries and purchase of top-of-the-range vehicles for council senior officials.
Council is also mulling retrenching 1 049 workers, with those remaining set to be slapped with a salary cut.
The local authority is owed close to $100 million in unpaid rates and water bills, a development that has continued to compromise service delivery.
Online Reporter
Bongani Ndlovu