Power outages cripple SMEs operations
MICRO, Small to Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) say their business operations are being
crippled by prolonged power outages, which result in losses.
Following the recent reduction in power output at Kariba Hydro-Power Station due to
reduced water levels, Zimbabwe has lost significant generation and supply capacity.
Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC)
As of yesterday, the Zimbabwe Power Company indicated the country was producing a
combined 438 megawatts of power, with Kariba generating 200 megawatts compared to
the more than 700 megawatts it used to pump in recent months.
While the Government is making efforts to boost supplies through imports from regional
suppliers and bringing on board small independent power projects, businesses have said
the supply gap is adversely affecting their viability.
Household consumers are also crying foul
In an interview Bulawayo Chamber of SMEs co-ordinator, Mr Nketha Mangoye Dlamini
said power outages were crippling production capacity and causing losses.
Mr Nketha Mangoye Dlamini
“Businesses have not been spared as most of the small to medium enterprises cannot
produce and close until maybe electricity comes back. So, it is disruptive in terms of the
planning process and also production,” he said.
“We areaware that there are certain businesses where clients have waited for them to
produce but they could not produce because of the electricity disruptions. This affects
both the confidence of the market and also the production system.”
On Tuesday, Cabinet also deliberated on the country’s crippling power situation
following the announcement that electricity generation at Kariba Power Station could be
stopped until early January 2023.
Earlier the power utility had been directed to halt electricity generation at Kariba Hydro
Power Station but later Government clarified that the giant station will remain
operational but at less than half of its capacity.
ZRA administers the Kariba Dam on behalf of Zambia and Zimbabwe and it stated that
water storage at the dam is at 4,6 percent of capacity, below the levels needed to run
power generation operations at the Kariba South Bank power station.
Also commenting, a representative at Fresh Food Market said power outages have slowed
down operations as they are now taking more time to serve customers.
National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1)
In the retail sector, products like meat, milk and fruits are going bad resulting in a loss of
stocks. The official said power outages should be solved as their businesses were starting
to cripple down.
Under the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1), the blueprint that guides the
country’s development between 2021 to 2025, SMEs play a crucial role in transforming
the economy.
In recent years, SMEs have become dominant economic players in Zimbabwe but a
majority of them still operate informally and the power outages are now stalling their
development.-The Chronicle
