Zimpapers Logo

Mr Fullard Gwasira

Innocent Ruwende Municipal Reporter
ZESA has written off US$80 million debts belonging to the farming community and will proportionally adjust customers’ bills.
The power company spokesperson Mr Fullard Gwasira said all domestic customers will benefit from debt relief of US$160 per household while orphanages, old people’s homes and welfare organisations such as Jairos Jiri, Kapota School of the Blind, among others will benefit from a total debt relief as at 30th June 2013.

The total debt relief to domestic customers amounts to US$90 million.
“After extensive consultations with farmers’ representatives and other stakeholders, the following measures have been approved as a way of contributing to the general economic recovery, the success of agrarian reform in general and the new planting season in particular, debt relief for the farming community to the total of US$80 million, targeted at the resettled farmers and rural farmers.

“Customer bills will be proportionally adjusted and this will reflect on the October 2013 Bills. Customers on prepaid meters will have their amortised outstanding debt adjusted accordingly,” he said.

Mr Gwasira said Zesa would continue to install prepaid meters on all farming properties with capacity of up to 50kVA and modalities are being put in place to ensure that all farmers, including those with higher capacity of over 50kVA, will be on prepaid meters as soon as the requisite meters are procured.

He said customers on prepaid meters would have their amortised outstanding debt adjusted accordingly and those already on prepaid and without debt, will be credited the equivalent amount in units.

Mr Gwasira said to date Zesa has installed over 300 000 meters countrywide, which is more than half its domestic customer base adding that the authority anticipates that every domestic customer will have a prepaid meter by December 2013.

“Zesa is confident that these measures will provide a significant stimulus towards national economic recovery and remains committed to fulfilling its mandate of providing safe, reliable and secure electricity supplies, said Mr Gwasira.

The authority urges its customers to come forward and pay their bills on time to avoid the inconvenience of disconnections. In July this year then Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo ordered the country’s 92 local authorities to cancel debts owed by residents from February 2009 to the end of June 2013 and most of the authorities have already complied.

Vice President Joice Mujuru also urged Zesa to cancel debts.