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HDF Energy and Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) have agreed to develop Zimbabwe’s first green hydrogen power plant, with the French GH2 developer promising financial close soon.

While imposing macroeconomic problems continue to weigh on developers, Zimbabwe is seeking ways to attract investment to independent power producers and commercial and industrial (C&I) projects. And among recent schemes to overcome being ostracised by international capital markets Zimbabwe is looking to use its wealthier C&I power consumers to provide corporate guarantees to raise capital for new projects.

Zimbabwe is rolling out the welcome mat to private investors to mitigate its power deficit, with new tax incentives for a potential 200MW of run-of-river capacity in the Eastern Highlands and big plans for long-stalled large hydro scheme. The shift towards market-friendly reforms is welcome, but macroeconomic and fiscal problems continue to pose major difficulties for investors, writes Marc Howard.

Construction is under way on the first phase of a solar PV plant at Zimplats’ Selous Metallurgical Complex.

Analysis of the latest information on the African Energy Live Data platform shows that over half of the 23.4GW electricity generation capacity expected online by 2027 across southern Africa will come from public procurement rounds, some 12.5GW of it from renewables and hybrid technologies.

Plagued by acute shortages of electricity, Zambia and Zimbabwe have turned to independent power producers (IPPs) to cover the shortfalls in power supply.

Australia’s Invictus Energy has extended the contract for Exalo’s Rig 202 to allow further drilling in Muzarabani. That leaves Helium One needing another rig for its Tanzania drilling campaign.

Off-grid liquid generation remains a costly default option for retail customers in countries with unreliable grids. Half-a-dozen grid collapses this year in Nigeria have demonstrated how unreliable and underpowered the grid is, with diesel and other small genset backups estimated to comprise as much as 12GW of off-grid liquid capacity.

French developer Total Eren and AIM-listed Chariot are partnering to develop a 30MWp solar plant to supply the Karo platinum mine in Zimbabwe’s Great Dyke.

Questions continue to be asked about security issues in Zimbabwe, in the wake of a recent training exercise by the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) in Mashonaland Central province, an area which fans out north of Harare to the borders with Mozambique and Zambia.

A 12MWac capacity solar PV plant for the Caledonia Mining Corporation-operated Blanket Mine has started operations. The grid-tied plant is expected to provide about 27% of the mine’s electricity needs.

Coal remains king in a number of African markets – led by Morocco and South Africa, which usually prefer to tout their credentials as champions of renewable energy. Coal generation is set to peak in 2024, as Live Data shows some 2.7GW of new capacity being added in parallel to planned decommissioning. Given its role in providing baseload, coal is not going away in economies that have come to depend on the combustible, controversial fuel.

Southern Africa leaders have made a joint appeal at COP27 for nearly $20bn from investors to complete electricity transmission interconnectors and fund new renewable energy projects, in part to increase energy capacity in the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).

Distributed Power Africa’s has signed a 25-year power lease agreement with Varun Beverages for a rooftop solar PV facility at the soft drinks manufacturer’s plant in Harare. Zimbabwe has emerged as a significant C&I market, reflecting the extent to which recurrent power blackouts are curtailing economic output, prompting companies and individuals to invest in solar energy.

State utility Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) has increased tariffs for exporters and introduced US dollar charges for all foreign currency-earning companies, to boost its forex purse. Zesa is grappling to meet a growing demand for electricity fuelled by a mining economy which is targeting $12bn annual production by 2023.