Zimbabwe : Major disruption to Zimbabwe’s national power grid

On Wednesday March 6, 2024, a major power failure affected most of Zimbabwe, resulting in a widespread blackout. The Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) worked quickly to restore the system following the incident.

ZESA informed its customers that a major disruption had occurred at 9.38am, leading to an interruption in production at the Hwange power station, affecting the entire national grid.

The national power utility explained that « this disruption has resulted in a significant reduction in electrical load across the country. » It also assured that its engineers were working tirelessly to restore service as quickly as possible.

The outage affected both businesses and individuals, who had to rely on backup generators and solar systems to make up for the lack of power.

The impact of these disruptions is all the more serious given the country’s current difficulties with regular power cuts.

In recent years, Zimbabwe has experienced recurrent power shortages, attributed to a variety of factors, including low water levels in the Kariba dam, the country’s main source of hydroelectric power, and obsolete equipment.

The country’s electricity production capacity has not kept pace with growing demand due to population and economic growth, leading to a gradual deterioration in the energy situation.

Keneth Ononga