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Innocent Ruwende Senior Reporter
Harare City Council’s Morton Jaffray is gobbling electricity worth $1,1 million monthly and the bill is likely to fall by 25 percent once rehabilitation of the water works has been completed.

Water director Engineer Hosiah Chisango recently said the rehabilitation of the plant would increase efficiency, as well as water supplies.

“A completely new switchroom was constructed and equipped,” he said.

“The new pumping plant will lead to reduction in power consumption by about 25 percent. Currently, Morton Jaffray consumed about $1,1 million of power per month.

“A pumping plant, which includes seven pumps and their associated motors, transformers and valves, were also replaced and these at a cost of $15 million. Other major works also included construction of warehouses and a workshop.”

Eng Chisango said site uplifting was carried out at the plant, including construction of a wall and rehabilitation of roads.

Work was in progress to rehabilitate filter controls for the phase two and three works, which have 36 filters, he said.

The city council says the rehabilitation of the plant is almost 90 percent complete.

The city, which signed a $144 million loan deal with China’s Exim Bank for the rehabilitation of the waterworks in 2011, is yet to get over $70 million which is still outstanding.

The non-disbursement of progress payments has already caused the implementation schedule under the contract to be seriously delayed, as the project could not be completed by June 27 last year.

Although Chinese company, China Machinery and Engineering Corporation has completed most of the works at Morton Jaffray, other works need to be capacitated to deal with increased volumes of water.

The project covers the rehabilitation of Morton Jaffray, Crowborough, Firle sewage works, Warren Control, Letombo Pump Station, Alex and New Alex Pump Houses and Borrowdale Brooke Sewage Pump Station.

The State-owned Chinese company supplies the equipment and all the materials for the project, including construction vehicles, workshop tools, ICT paraphernalia, tractors, boats and pumps.