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Press Room (ADV) – Preliminary work on Batoka Gorge hydropower plant, with 2,400 megawatts of power, will start next January, as Zimbabwe aims to become self-sufficient in energy, a minister said Wednesday Cabinet.
The US $ 5.2 billion plant, which will be located a few kilometers downstream from Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River, will be a joint venture between Zimbabwe and Zambia, which will share the tie electricity.
Zimbabwe currently produces about 1,300 megawatts for a demand of over 2,000 megawatts and relies on regional imports to cover the deficit.
The acting Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting, Mangaliso Ndlovu, was quoted as saying by the official New Ziana news agency that the project would start soon.
"The Cabinet was informed that, following a recent visit by delegations from China Power and General Electric, project contractors, the preliminary work of the project was now scheduled to start in January 2019," he said.
In March, Zimbabwe commissioned the expansion project for the China-built and funded Kariba South hydroelectric power station, which added 300 megawatts to the national grid. The project cost 533 million US dollars.
In June, it also launched the expansion project for the Hwange Thermal Power Plant, which is expected to be completed within 42 months and will add 600 MW to the national grid.
The project will cost $ 1.5 billion and will be carried out by the Chinese company Sinohydro, the same company that undertook the Kariba South expansion project.
© Bur-csa – N.A.African Daily Voice (ADV) – Follow us on twitter : @ADVinfo_eng
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