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Golden Sibanda Senior Business Reporter—
GOVERNMENT says Indian company, Jaguar Overseas Limited (JOL), csould get project funding from Afreximbank to carry out the re-powering works on the Harare Power Station with financial closure believed to be in the horizon. JOL was awarded the contract to rebuild Harare Power Station’s generation capacity in August 2014 at a cost of about $72 million, but no works have commenced on the ground due to the unavailability of funding.

The Zimbabwe Power Company, which floated the tender for the re-powering of Harare Power Station, also awarded JOL the contract for the re-powering of Munyati Thermal Power Station at an EPC cost of $149 million.

The Indian company had initially looked to finance the project using funding which was expected to come from the Indian Export and Import Bank, but the deal fell through amid indications the two’s relationship had broken.

Secretary for Energy and Power Development Patison Mbiriri, in an interview last Friday, said that funding for re-powering of Harare Power Station is now likely to come from the African Export and Import Bank. “Indications are that they (Jaguar Overseas Limited) are going to get funding from Afreximbank and they are close to financial closure,” he said.

The project is part of the small thermals re-powering or capacity rebuild programme that will augment output from existing and ongoing capacity expansion to close deficits. Zimbabwe’s demand for power stands at 1 400MW at peak periods, but internal capacity can only manage about 1000MW.

Mr Mbiriri said while Government was naturally concerned about delays in getting the project underway, it had looked at the cost of terminating the contract which includes re-tendering and adjudication processes. There is an outcry from some quarters about the decision to award JOL the Munyati tender when it is struggling to fulfil the Harare project.