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He also lauded the Egyptian ministries’ mining companies first have to go through This put them at risk of being attacked by
movement of their headquarters to NAC, deposits of thermal coal, which is burned to crocodiles.
expressing his country’s readiness for offering produce energy, explained Finance Minister According to the tentative agreement,
its expertise and studies in several fields. Mthuli Ncube. Kariba will credit the ZPC account with $36
He also showed his interest in expanding Any company setting up mining operations million and clear the Zimbabwe Electricity
Siemens investments in Egypt. in the area must also build a power station Transmission and Distribution Company
that runs on thermal coal and feeds electricity (ZETDC) debt.
into the grid, he told the Thomson Reuters Kariba owed $39 million before the
Foundation. agreement with Zesa convinced ZETDC
COAL “We expect that by 2025, all those mining to soften its stance and reconnect the
companies will be pumping so much waterworks.
Zimbabwe pursues coal electricity into the grid, Zimbabwe will have a of about $3,5 million.
On its part, Kariba had paid an instalment
surplus,” he said.
In contrast to the growing number of Ncube estimated that the new mining The agreement now has to be formalised
countries seeking to wean themselves off coal, operations in Hwange - nine of which have to extricate Kariba Municipality from a web
Zimbabwe is opening new coal mines that started or completed construction since 2018 that was putting it on a collision course with
authorities say will allow the country to meet - will add a surplus of about 5,000 megawatts residents.
its energy needs and, eventually, become an (MW) to Zimbabwe’s power capacity. Mayor George Masendu heaved a sigh of
exporter of the polluting fuel. Maphosa and other green activists, relief after marathon meetings and phone calls
The government is looking to turn the however, warned that the southern African as council sought to find a solution.
northwest district of Hwange into a coal hub, nation is going down an “environmentally “We are grateful that we have managed
with private investors - mostly based in China unfriendly” route that will harm efforts to to reach an agreement with Zesa. Electricity
– investing up to $1 billion to build coking slow global warming. has been restored to our water intake stations
mines and thermal coal power plants, Reuters while we move to mobilise funds to clear the
reported. September bill,” he said.
But environmentalists say the move - Kariba said they were notching a monthly
part of a bigger plan to grow mining into a HYDRO electricity bill of about $4 million and focus
$12-billion industry by 2023 - will increase was now being shifted to collecting the
Zimbabwe’s climate-warming carbon Zimbabwe: Zesa, Kariba $99 million owed by residents and other
emissions and harm the wildlife in its largest ratepayers.
natural reserve. Reach Agreement
“Zimbabwe can’t be going back to coal
as if we were in 1985 or 1977, while the Kariba Municipality has worked out an
whole world is now divesting from coal,” agreement with the Zimbabwe Power TARIFFS
said Khumbulani Maphosa, a climate change Company (ZPC) which has seen electricity
activist and head of the Matabeleland Institute being restored to water intake and pump Halt proposed electricity
for Human Rights. stations.
Coking coal - also called metallurgical coal As a result of the disconnection on tariff increment, ActionAid
- is turned into a fuel used for smelting in steel Monday, which lasted for about 24 hours, taps
production. in most areas were dry, pushing residents to Nigeria tells NERC
To get to the coking coal in Hwange, fetch water and do laundry from Lake Kariba.

Week 35 02•September•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P13