ZPC puts final touches on Hwange expansion, Deka projects

THE Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) says final touches are being put on Hwange Power Station Units 7 and 8 expansion and the Deka Pipeline Upgrade projects, which have above 90 percent completion rates.

The massive infrastructure projects are critical to taming Zimbabwe’s power supply deficit, trimming the import bill, and creating more downstream opportunities for locals.

ZPC is also engaged in the construction of homes under the Relocation Action Plan (RAP), a compensatory housing project for the community whose homes were affected by the new transmission line for the Hwange Expansion Project. The project is 84,11 percent complete, said the utility.

Already, Hwange Thermal Power Station’s Unit 7 has since been successfully synchronised to the national grid, adding 300 megawatts. The expansion project is one of the signature investments under the Second Republic led by President Mnangagwa who led the groundbreaking event of the US$1,4 billion project in 2018.

Expectations are that by June this year, everything would have been put in place to ensure the installed capacity of 300MW would be achieved, and President Mnangagwa would then officially commission the project.

In an update on Tuesday, ZPC said Hwange Unit 7 and 8 project was at 98,94 percent complete while Deka Upgradation Project is at 91,3 percent.

“The Hwange Unit 7 and 8 Expansion project is at 98,94 percent complete. Unit 7 was synchronised to the national grid on the 20 of March 2023. On-load tests and checks for the unit are still going on, and commercial operation date is set for 29th June 2023,” said ZPC.

It added that Unit 8 is expected to start commercial operation on September 28, 2023.

The synchronisation process is meant to check where the new plant will operate efficiently and ensure higher levels of safety as small deviations can cause significant damage. On the Deka project whose overall progress stands at 91,3 percent complete, ZPC said the first 21km of the 42km pipeline was commissioned on March 19, 2023 and officially handed over on March 27. The rest of the pipeline is scheduled for the second quarter and the remaining works are set to be completed in March next year.

The 42km pipeline project that connects Deka High Lift Pump Station to Hwange Power Station is critical to enhanced operationalisation of the Hwange Thermal Power Station, which is being boosted with 600MW capacity.

The scope of the project also includes the refurbishment of Hwange Water Treatment Plant and provision of three tap-off points for supply of raw water to the Deka community.

The project officially commenced in October last year and is being funded to the tune of US$48,1 million from a line of credit extended by India to Zimbabwe.

ZPC has said the construction of homes under the Relocation Action Plan (RAP) was progressing well with most structures now at roof level on the remaining construction sites.

“ZPC has completed construction of 17 homes for the second group of 72 households that had to be moved to make place for the 335-kilometer Hwange-Insukamini transmission line.

“The 17 houses are ready for handover. The first lot of 12 houses were handed over in February 2022,” it said.

Meanwhile, in the period under review, ZPC sent out 1274.10GWh thereby missing its quarterly target of 1809.41GWh by 29.59 percent.

Hwange Power Station generated an average of four units during the quarter and managed to surpass the quarterly target set at 612,87GWh by 0,63 percent.

Due to low water levels on Lake Kariba, Kariba Power Station generated at an average of 250MW in January then increased generation to an average of 350MW until the end of the quarter.

Small thermals such as Bulawayo, Harare and Munyati sent out a combined 16,79 GWh of energy, missing the quarterly target, which was set at 71,55GWh by 87,09 percent.

This is attributed to low plant availability and coal stock outs, which resulted in loss of generation, ZPC said.-chronicle.co.zw