Zim Energy import soars in Q3

Oscar J Jeke

Zim Now Reporter

Zimbabwe increased its electricity imports during the third quarter of 2024, with the latest report from the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency, showing 611.1 GWh of electricity imported, marking an 18.6% increase from 515.4 GWh in the previous quarter.

This surge in imports is attributed primarily to the country's reliance on external supply, particularly as local generation struggles to meet demand. In this quarter, about 50% of the imported electricity came from Eskom, South Africa's state-owned power utility. The remaining imports were sourced from HCB and EDM, both based in Mozambique, which contributed 19% and 18%, respectively.

“About fifty percent of the imported electricity was sourced from Eskom, South Africa, while HCB, Mozambique and EDM, Mozambique, provided 19 and 18 percent respectively,” reads the report.

The overall index of electricity generation for Zimbabwe also showed improvement, with a quarter-on-quarter increase of 4.2%, reaching an index value of 105.8 compared to 101.5 in the previous quarter. Year-on-year, this represents a 4.5% increase from 101.2 recorded in the same quarter last year.

However, despite these gains, domestic production remains insufficient, necessitating increased imports to stabilize supply.

The report highlights that local power generation is still heavily reliant on major facilities like Hwange Power Station and Kariba Power Station, which together accounted for a significant portion of the total output in Q3 2024.