Zimasco engages families likely to be affected by solar project

FERROCHROME producer Zimasco has started engagements with about 18 families that are likely to be relocated to pave way for the company’s solar plant power lines.

The company bought a piece of land between Mbizo suburb and Sebakwe River where it intends to set up a 100MW solar plant.

The project is expected to generate electricity for the company’s smelting operations as well as Kwekwe City Council’s sewerage and water treatment plants.

The excess power will be fed into the national grid.

Following the closure of some furnaces last year due to high electricity bills and poor international chrome prices, the company decided to establish a solar plant to reduce production costs.

The company said as a stop gap measure, it has since negotiated for reduced electricity tariffs with Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) but said the long term solution is to use solar energy, which is not cleaner but also cheap.

The solar project is likely to affect at least 18 families in Mbizo 1 and 2 whose houses will have to be relocated to pave way for the power lines.

On Monday, a team comprising officials from Zimasco, Kwekwe City Council and Environment Management Agency (EMA) met families likely to be affected by the project to discuss the issue of compensation.

Zimasco projects engineer, Simon Dzoro said the impact assessment carried out by ZETDC showed that some families will have to be relocated.

“After the impact assessment, they told us that some families might be affected and will have to be relocated. The engagement therefore is to map the way forward with the families likely to be affected,” he said.

Eng Dzoro said the engagements were meant to alert the households of the developments and the company’s plans to compensate them.

“After this, we will be moving to each household to understand finer details like the size of the land, the size and value of the house and so on. So far, indications are that we might be going for an asset-to-asset compensation where the families will have their assets replaced by another asset,” he said.

Eng Dzoro said the construction of the power line alone may take between two to three months while the construction of the solar plant may take three years.

The project site had been reserved for energy development related to water and sewage treatment facilities.

Kwekwe Mayor, Councillor Albert Zinhanga said the matter is yet to be tabled before a full council.

“We are yet to meet as councillors to map the best way forward, guided by the engagements we are having with the families likely to be affected by the project,” he said.