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Freeman Razemba–Senior Reporter 

A DELEGATION from Chinese renewable energy company, Shandong Dingneng New Energy Company Limited, is in Zimbabwe to conduct a feasibility study for a 600 megawatts coal-fired thermal power station and 200MW solar plant.

The visit comes after a Zimbabwean delegation led by Energy and Power Development Minister Edgar Moyo was in Shanghai, China, in January to meet potential investors to explore possibilities for investment and collaboration in the energy sector as the Second Republic moves to create a robust power sector that will support the country’s economic development.

The delegation is led by Shandong Dingneng chairperson Mrs Liu Lining and yesterday they met Minister Moyo, senior government officials and others, including officials from Zesa Holdings in Harare. 

In an interview, Minister Moyo said the visit by the delegation showed the excitement which the recent visit to China generated and the desire to invest in the country.

“We visited China early this year in January on the backdrop of our supply-demand deficit and we went there to scout for investments in the sector. We met this company and they expressed their desire to come and a few weeks thereafter, they are here. And that shows the seriousness with which they took our visit and their desire to invest in this country. 

“And I think this is also driven by the number of Chinese companies which are here, which are happy with the investment environment. Confidence in the country is exhibited by their quick follow up.

“At the moment they are on a fact finding trip. But the basic fact I can give you is that they want to add 600MW more to our existing power capacity. They will also be doing some 200MW of solar, so giving us a total of 800MW projected investment into the power sector. Like I said, they are scouting. They can do it in Hwange, they could do it elsewhere where they find good coal deposits and also proximity to the grid,” he said.

Minister Moyo appealed to Zimbabweans to use power sparingly and utilise gas and solar where possible.

“What I can say for now is that we all know we have a shifting target where demand for power is rising and our supply is also rising, but not as fast a pace as we would like. So we would like to urge our people to use power sparingly and also do solar rooftops and also use gas so that we can conserve our power and ensure that we go through this winter, summer and the farming season,” he said. 

Shandong Dingneng New Energy chairperson Mrs Liu Lining said: “For this trip we have eight people in our team, which includes engineers of our company and also some executive members of our company. We are here to do the feasibility study of the power project. We hope to make contributions for the development of the power sector and generation for Zimbabwe”.

She thanked stakeholders that attended yesterday’s meeting and the information that was provided to them.

“Thank you for the meeting held and information that was provided today by all the departments and companies participating, which includes the Ministry of Energy and Power and also the Ministry of Mines and Mining and also the ZERA and all others. We are really, really grateful. Thank you for the help and support with the information today and we are committed to bringing the green development plant to Zimbabwe. And we also want to make some contributions to the industrial development of Zimbabwe,” Mrs Liu said.

During the visit to China, Minister Moyo was accompanied by ZESA executive chairman Dr Sydney Gata and representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

The trip sought to strengthen the country’s energy sector through partnerships with engineering, procurement, construction and funding companies.

The minister also witnessed the signing of several memorandums of understanding between Chinese companies and ZESA Enterprises.