Zim GBC News | Masvingo Correspondent
MASVINGO – The Government has announced plans to develop two new mini-hydropower plants along the Mutirikwi River, a move set to generate a combined 20 megawatts (MW) of electricity and solidify Zimbabwe’s transition to clean energy.
This expansion follows the successful commissioning of the 5MW Mutirikwi Dam hydropower plant earlier this year, which has already improved power supplies in Masvingo city and surrounding areas.
Permanent Secretary for Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Dr Addmore Pazvakavambwa, confirmed that feasibility studies have identified significant potential downstream of the existing plant.
“There is scope for building more mini-hydropower plants downstream of Mutirikwi River to generate power, and initial feasibility studies have shown that a cumulative 20MW can be produced along the river,” Dr. Pazvakavambwa said.
The next phase, dubbed Mutirikwi 2, will add another 5MW to the grid. A larger project is also planned further downstream at Bangala Dam, which is expected to contribute 10MW.
“A cumulative 20MW of clean energy could be produced along Mutirikwi River alone,” Dr. Pazvakavambwa stated.
“If we add the 15MW being developed at the Tugwi-Mukosi hydropower project, we will be talking of Masvingo as the home of clean energy in Zimbabwe.”
The Permanent Secretary highlighted that the province’s high density of dams presents vast opportunities for renewable power generation, which is critical for reducing electricity imports and the outages that hamper industrial growth.
“With the Government also expanding the rural industrialisation drive, there is need to develop more power projects,” he added.
“We are happy that the Public Service Pension Fund is also involved at the Tugwi-Mukosi hydropower project, which is now in full swing and will soon add more clean energy into the grid.”
Masvingo is already a key player in renewable energy, with Hippo Valley and Triangle sugar mills producing over 30MW from sugarcane by-products, part of which is fed into the national grid.
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