Page 22 - AfrElec Week 46 2022
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AfrElec RENEWABLES AfrElec
Belarusian investors to
build 100MW solar farm in
northwestern Zimbabwe
ZIMBABWE ZIMBABWE’S cabinet has approved a frame- relations. The former imports agricultural equip-
work agreement for Belarusian investors to build ment from the latter, mainly tractors and com-
a 100MW solar energy plant at Norton, 100km bine harvesters.
west of Harare, the capital, according to a local Emmerson Mnangagwa, the southern Afri-
daily. can nation’s president, visited Minsk in January
State-owned The Herald reported on 2019 and his Belarus counterpart, Aleksandr
Wednesday (November 16) that the acting min- Lukashenko is billed to reciprocate in Decem-
ister of information, Sekai Nzenza, told jour- ber 2022. Belarus deputy prime minister, Piotr
nalists after Tuesday’s cabinet meeting that the Parkhomchik visited Zimbabwe in early Octo-
justice minister, Ziyambi Ziyambi, presented ber 2022. Zimbabwe state-owned The Herald
the framework agreement, which the ministers reported at the time of Lukashenko’s planned
endorsed. visit.
“The Belarus Solar Power Plant was granted Information minister Monica Mutsvangwa
national project status in October 2019, and will said in August 2021 that the unnamed Belaru-
be undertaken through [Zimbabwe power util- sian investors would sign an offtake agreement
ity] Zesa Holdings,” Nzenza said. with Zesa Holdings to underpin the $125.5mn
Zimbabwe and Belarus enjoy cordial bilateral project.
Lithium battery thefts
rise in Botswana
BOTSWANA THERE has been a surge in the theft of lithium in possession of 12 lithium-ion batteries worth
batteries in Botswana as demand for alterna- reported ZAR 350,000 suspected to have been
tive power sources for home and industrial stolen in and around Gaborone, Motube said.
use increases across Southern Africa, News24 Meanwhile, in Zimbabwe, copper cable theft
reported on Thursday (November 17). is also on the rise amid a global appetite for the
According to Botswana police in Tlokweng, metal. According to News24, the Zimbabwe
near the country’s border with South Africa, Electricity Supply Authority lost cables worth an
four Zimbabwean men who were in possession estimated ZAR 72mn last year. This year alone,
of 40 batteries worth about ZAR 1.25mn (about 500 cases of theft and vandalism have been
$73,000) were arrested on Tuesday. The batteries reported to the police.
could have been stolen from cell phone towers, The biggest police find yet was when a South
police said. African national and five Zimbabweans tried
“The items are suspected to have been sto- to smuggle 1,700kg of stolen copper cables into
len from different telecommunications towers South Africa, writes the media agency.
belonging to Mascom cellular network service The theft of copper cables is widespread in
provider,” said assistant commissioner Dipheko South Africa, with authorities hard-pressed to
Motube from the Botswana Police Service’s pub- break the syndicates behind the theft. If caught,
lic relations office. however, criminals face harsh punishment.
In a separate incident in Francistown on According to News24, three Zimbabweans were
Monday, police arrested two suspects, a Bot- sentenced to 10 years in jail by the Pretoria Mag-
swana man and a Zimbabwean. They were found istrate’s Court for cable theft in October.
P22 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 46 16•November•2022
