Zimbabwe’s thermal plant upgrading will add 400 megawatts to the grid
The president of Zimbabwe’s state-owned power provider, ZESA, announced that the government will upgrade its Hwange coal-fired power plant for $455 million, adding 400 megawatts to its power grid, or a fifth of its current electricity consumption.
A 15-year concession agreement between the southern African nation and India’s Jindal Steel’s Africa-focused division has opened a new chapter for the renovation of some of the thermal power plant’s aging units.
The agreement was finalized and signed in December after being approved by Zimbabwe’s cabinet on September 17, according to a Monday update obtained by Reuters from Cletus Nyachowe, interim CEO of ZESA.
“The 15-year agreement with Jindal will lead to enhanced power generation, which will add 400 MW to our output within the next 48 months,” added Nyachowe.
“In the first quarter of 2026, rehabilitation work is scheduled to begin,” he continued.
Only half of Zimbabwe’s 2,000 MW electricity needs are now met, and the country’s power facilities’ declining capacity causes prolonged blackouts.
In 2023, the nation’s largest plant, the 1,520 MW Hwange, was modernized with the commissioning of two 600 MW units. However, due to malfunctions, older units constructed in the 1980s are only functioning at a third of their full capacity.
The 1960s-era Kariba hydropower station got a 300 MW renovation in 2018, increasing its capacity to 1,050 MW. Its ability to generate electricity has also decreased recently because to droughts brought on by climate change.
