Zimbabwe: Vandalism Cuts

Source from:  The Herald (Harare) 18 January 2008 01/21/2008

Extensive vandalism in Dema, Seke, on the 330KVA power lines has cut off the country's power imports from Mozambique, Zesa has announced. Zesa spokesperson Mr Fullard Gwasira said yesterday the country should brace for more power outages while the utility works to replace the stolen cables. Until the power cables are restored, Zimbabwe would lose 100 megawatts of power. The country was importing 200 megawatts of power from Mozambqiue. Mr Gwasira did not specify the time frame within which the repairs would be completed but indicated that Zesa would work non-stop to rectify the situation. "There will be more power outages until the lines are replaced. Zesa engineers are working around the clock to bring the situation to normal," he said. Zesa Holdings chief executive, Mr Ben Rafemoyo said last night Mozambique restored electricity supplies on January 11, 2007 after the power utility had paid US$10 million of its debt. Zesa was cut off on January 1, 2007 for failing to service a US$26 million date. From the vandals, Zesa was now depending on a low voltage line between Bindura and Mutorashanga, which is yielding 100MW. The Binudra-Dema line caters for the remainder. Zimbabwe requires at least 1 500MW daily. Apart from Mozambique, Zimbabwe imports electricity from the Democratic Republic of Congo while South Africa's Eskom cut exports owing to recurrent breakdowns at its power station. Eskom is struggling to meet domestic requirements, resulting in countrywide load-shedding in South Africa and total curtailment of exports. Zesa has reported an upsurge in cases of vandalism targeting substations and electricity pylons with the power utility losing more than $1 trillion worth of equipment and components. Illegal connections to the power grid to facilitate energy theft have also impacted negatively on energy flow. As a result, the Electricity Amendment Act was codified last year to provide stiffer penalties for persons guilty of illegally diverting electricity or vandalising Zesa infrastructure. Mr Gwasira said the theft of components had a negative impact on bulk supplies and consequently the economy at large. Meanwhile, businesses stand to make huge losses because of lost production time from frequent and prolonged blackouts, the worst hit being mines and the health sector. Mines have since reported swelling water levels underground as a result of power cuts. This disrupts operations and can lead to the collapse of a mine. Many companies have turned to generators as an alternative source of electricity. Tobacco farmers countrywide also face losses running into billions because of disruption of curing by power outages. Enditem