ZESA Holdings has said power cuts which have been experienced in some parts of Bulawayo are not due to load-shedding but are a result of a temporary upsurge in electricity demand.
A number of Bulawayo suburbs have been experiencing intermittent power cuts lately despite the power utility saying there was enough power for local consumption. Zesa spokesperson Mr Fullard Gwasira said if load-shedding was to be introduced, the power utility would have notified customers before taking such an exercise.
“For us to introduce load-shedding we would have to inform the customers before hand so they can make plans ahead of the power cuts. As for now there is no load-shedding though at times power cuts do occur in some areas as the demand surges and the supply is not adequate to meet that sudden increase in demand.”
“The customers should save power to avoid these power outages. We have always urged them to switch off lights and other electrical appliances when they are not in use so as to conserve energy,” said Mr Gwasira.
He said the power utility was producing enough electricity to meet local demand though at times there was a sharp increase in demand which causes some of the power outages.
Recently, Zesa Holdings’ subsidiary, the Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC), in its fourth quarter report indicated that the country was producing adequate electricity to meet local demand. ZPC said it was exporting surplus electricity of around 20 to 30 megawatts to Namibia following excellent power generation performance at Hwange and Kariba power stations._The Sunday News
