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Zvamaida Murwira Senior Reporter

There has been overwhelming interest in solar energy investments that will help ease the current power shortages after Government guaranteed investors of power purchase agreement that will see more than 1 000 Mega Watts onto the national grid, Finance and Economic Development Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube has said.

This comes as the Second Republic led by President Mnangagwa steps up efforts to end current power challenges through the adoption of a cocktail of measures which mainly hinge on increasing local power development that is expected to ensure the country achieves its national goals as envisaged by Vision 2030 anchored by the National Development Strategy 1.

Prof Ncube said besides support for investors in solar energy, Government is pushing for beneficiation particularly in minerals such as lithium, something that has seen it getting standing ovation from the global community.

The head of Treasury said this yesterday in a virtual interview with Zimpapers Television Network from Davos, Switzerland, where he is attending the World Economic Forum that brings together Government, business and civil society to discuss economic issues affecting the world.

“We will offer them Government guarantees of power purchase agreements if they invest in solar energy and they seem to be all warming up. Our expectation is that if all goes well this could produce more than 1 000MW extra power over the next few years. So there are opportunities as well in that regard,” said Prof Ncube.

Zimbabwe is presently facing acute power shortages which have seen consumers going for long hours, outside the normal load-shedding periods, without electricity.

The situation, caused by frequent breakdowns at Hwange Thermal Station, has been compounded by water shortages in Kariba Dam which provides the bulk of Zimbabwe’s electricity supplies.

Prof Ncube said the decision by the Government to ban export of raw products such as minerals was part of efforts to turn around the economy and emphasised that it was not political rhetoric.

“It takes time for the process to be maximised. Look at what we have done starting with lithium. There mustn’t be exports of raw minerals, we want beneficiation to take place, we want investors to invest in lithium concentrates. It is not just rhetoric, we are serious and the world is commending Zimbabwe for what we have done on lithium,” said Prof Ncube.

“There are also other areas where beneficiation must be promoted, the agro-processing sector so that natural resources or primary commodities are not exported as raw. Look at the number of locally produced goods on our shelves, almost 70 percent. We also expect other investors to invest in battery manufacturing, so we are serious about beneficiation. This is all meant to ensure that growth becomes sustainable.”

He said discussions around climate change and debt restructuring were continuing given the bearing that they have on the economy.

Prof Ncube said it was critical that the West funds mitigation efforts of climate change since it affects everyone.

He said according to expert figures, 200 million people are expected to migrate as a result of climate change in coming years.

The Finance and Economic Development Minister said Government’s investment in dam construction and irrigation was also bearing fruit given the wheat output that was realised last season.

He said they were meeting investors from different sectors under the mantra “Zimbabwe is Open for Business”.

Under the Theme “Cooperation in a Fragmented World, the annual World Economic Forum will bring together more than 2 700 leaders from Government, business and civil society.

Leaders are required to address people’s immediate critical needs while also laying the groundwork for a more sustainable resilient world by the end of the decade.