Zimbabwe not keen on developing solar power

• 8 years ago (2016-10-25)
• David Flin

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A senior official of the Zimbabwe Government has said that the country is not keen on developing solar power, because it is expensive compared to other forms of energy. Patson Mbiriri, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Power Development, said that developing solar energy was not a viable option for Zimbabwe, despite the country possessing abundant sunshine.

Mbiriri said: “Solar is available during our off-peak period. We have peak demand in the morning and evening, when there is no sunshine. So we have lots of solar available during the day, during our off-peak period.” He said fair pricing of solar energy was also not guaranteed since “politics” always came into play in determining energy tariffs.

Mbiriri said Zimbabwe had enjoyed a stable supply of power over the year, despite facing significant challenges with power generation, due to reliable imports from South Africa and Mozambique. The country is importing 400 MW from these two countries. Zimbabwe’s power demand has fallen from 2200 MW a decade ago to 1400 MW, due to low industrial productivity.