PUMPING of water from the Mtshabezi-Umzingwane pipeline to Bulawayo was reportedly stopped on Saturday after government ran out of diesel to power generators at the project’s pumping house.
Nduduzo Tshuma
The project, which is being powered by generators because of delays in connecting electricity, has been pumping an average of 1,9 megalitres of water per day.
No comment could be obtained from Water Resources Development and Management minister Samuel Sipepa Nkomo as he was said to be out of the country.
Zimbabwe National Water Authority Umzingwane catchment manager Tommy Rosen could not comment on the matter, saying the project was yet to be handed over to them by government.
But sources said the generators were using 1 500 litres of diesel for 12 hours per day to pump water from Umzingwane.
“The project is facing problems of shortage of fuel and water has not been pumped to Bulawayo since Saturday,” a source said.
“Treasury indicated that it would not waste money on consumables like fuel, but would rather channel the funds towards the electrification of the project, which is still underway.”
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The much-anticipated project, which has suffered a number of false starts, was touted as a short-term solution to Bulawayo’s
perennial water problems. When fully operational, the project is expected to provide the city with an extra 17 000 cubic metres of water daily to cushion Bulawayo from a four-day water-shedding regime because of the dwindling levels in its supply dams.
The water shortages in Bulawayo have been worsened by poor rainfall recorded in the Matabeleland region and mostly Matabeleland South where Bulawayo’s supply dams are located.
