THE Export Import Bank of India has extended a $28,6 million loan facility to rehabilitate Deka pipeline as preparations for the expansion of Hwange Thermal Power Station begin, a company official has said.
Report by Tarisai Mandizha
The Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC), a unit of State-owned power utility Zesa, yesterday said Deka project in Hwange was expected to commence in October, and completed in 2015.
“Funding has been secured from the Indian government, and on June 21, 2013, the Export Import Bank of India and the government of Zimbabwe signed a line of credit worth $28,6 million for the upgrade of the Deka pipeline,” ZPC chairperson Victor Gapare said in a statement.
Gapare said the funds were also expected to unlock funding for Gairezi power project and repowering of Bulawayo Power Station. Official figures show that Hwange Power Station is the largest thermal station in the country, generating nearly 40% of Zimbabwe’s power requirements.
Gapare said the construction of the new pipeline would increase raw water for meeting the requirements of the station.
He added that in the past, the reliability and availability of the Deka water pumping system registered a steady downward trend, giving rise to uncertainty of raw water supply to the power plant and the Zimbabwe National Water Authority treatment plant, leading to water shortages.
“Having come to this realisation, ZPC is prompted to upgrade the Deka pumping station and rehabilitate the river intake system in preparation for the Hwange 7 and 8 expansion, and also to ensure that the community benefits from safe drinking water and water for domestic use,” Gapare said.
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He said the company would soon go for tender for the supply of materials to construct the pipeline.
“The conditions of the funding is that 75% of the materials will be from the funders and 25% from local market. We are about to go to tender in India and by year-end the project will have begun,” said Gapare.
Gapare said the Hwange Power Station currently requires 3 500m³ of raw water per hour, and this may increase to about 6 000m³ per hour when the expansion units are in operation.
He said the Water and Power Services Consultant and the government of India, under the Water Resources ministry, had been appointed project and engineering consultant for the Deka project.
