Zimbabwe commends Chinese investment for boosting electricity supply

Hwange Thermal Power Station in Hwange, Zimbabwe.(Xinhua/Zhang Baoping)

The small-scale power generation projects built by Chinese companies in Zimbabwe are boosting the country’s electricity supply, a Zimbabwean official has said.

Speaking at a roundtable discussion on strengthening Zimbabwe-China business cooperation in Harare, the country’s capital, Benson Munyaradzi, chief director of Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Energy and Power Development, said that an increasing number of Chinese investors are setting up their power plants as the southern African country grapples with a shortage of electricity supply.

He said that funding from the Chinese investors has enabled Zimbabwe to increase its power generation capacity by approximately 900 megawatts in recent years.

“We are still in a deficit, and we believe there are opportunities for more Chinese investors to invest in the power sector,” Munyaradzi said, adding that Zimbabwe welcomes investors to come in as independent power producers.

Over the years, Zimbabwe has been experiencing a power deficit due to aging infrastructure, inadequate investments, climate change and the exponential growth in demand for electricity.

Xinhua