Bulawayo power station

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Bulawayo power station is a permitted power station in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Bulawayo power station	Bulawayo, Bulawayo, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe	-20.158611, 28.575278 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3: -20.158611, 28.575278

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	Start year	Retired year
Unit 1	permitted	coal - unknown	30	subcritical	2022	–
Unit 2	permitted	coal - unknown	30	subcritical	2022	–
Unit 3	permitted	coal - unknown	30	subcritical	2022	–

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner
Unit 1	ZESA Holdings Ltd [100.0%]
Unit 2	ZESA Holdings Ltd [100.0%]
Unit 3	ZESA Holdings Ltd [100.0%]

Background

The plant was commissioned between 1947 and 1957 as an undertaking by the Municipality of Bulawayo. It joined the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority in 1987. While Bulawayo initially had an installed capacity of 120 MW, it was refurbished in 1999 to 90 MW. The main materials the plant uses to generate electricity are coal, chemicals, oil, and greases. The station generates an average of 30 MW.

2016 Refurbishment Project

As of 2016, the plant was planned for another refurbishment at a cost of US$87 million. The plant was expected to be 90 MW when completed, and was expected to be completed in mid-2018. In March 2016, it was reported that construction was planned to begin by the end of 2016.

In April 2017, it was reported that work on the refurbishment would start soon after ZESA secured US$90 million from an unnamed Indian bank. A company said that a separate challenge for the plant was securing coal efficiently from Hwange Colliery due to logistical challenges.

After securing $110 million from India's Eximbank and the Government of India, Bulawayo Power Station repowering was stalled by contractual disputes between ZESA and Bulawayo City Council (BCC). The dispute was resolved in April 2019, with Zimbabwe Power Company receiving a license for the station after hearing objections from the Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association and the Bulawayo City Council.

Despite these developments, IJGlobal reported in March 2019 that the government of Zimbabwe had cancelled plans for refurbishing Bulawayo power station, stating that the US$87 million loan from India's Eximbank had not been signed, and that the contract had been cancelled because the EPC contractor, Jaguar Overseas, had failed to secure sufficient funding for the project.

In June 2019, a federal committee toured the facility and found that the machines were ancient, unreliable, unserviceable, and with no spare parts available for the units. In addition, the Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) was awaiting the conclusion of the tender process to kick start the upgrading and repowering, and confirmed that it had secured funding. One key development for the repowering project was the construction of a pipeline from Khami Dam to bring water for the station’s boilers.

In July 2019, two Indian companies pre-qualified for the tendering process for the repowering project. The general manager for plant refurbishments said "you will see that between April 2020 and March 2022, we should be in implementation.”

As of October 2019, preparation of tender documents for the project still appeared in progress. Between 2019 and December 2021, "Power Column" reports by ZPC did not provide any further updates about the project.

However, in May 2020, reporting suggested that ZPC still had a funding commitment secured. In addition, an April 2021 article noted that EximBank was assessing a tender bid submitted by an Indian contractor. The US$87m loan had a 13-year tenure, a grace period of three years, and a repayment period of 10 years at two percent interest rate per annum.

A May 2022 article included claims by ZPC that plans to reopen the plant were "on course". However, the company also noted that they were increasing their focus on renewable energy options, namely the Gairezi Hydro Power Plant and the Batoka Gorge Hydro Power Plant.

According to an article from September 2022, the power station may have been in operation with a generating capacity of 30 MW. In March 2023, however, it was reported that Bulawayo power station was not producing any electricity.

In May 2023, an official from the Ministry of Energy and Power Development reportedly stated that the government was considering decommissioning the Bulawayo power station as it was "beyond repair."

In August 2023, Zimbabwe President Mnangagwa stated that there were plans to rehabilitate the power station so that it could feed into the national grid. Rehabilitation of one of the power station's boilers was reportedly underway and expected to restore 20 MW of capacity when complete by the end of August. The plant's overall repowering project was apparently still on hold, however, pending the utility's decision on how to allocate funds.

Decommissioning

In November 2023, Zimbabwe's Cabinet approved the country's "roadmap to electricity self-sufficiency", which would involve restructuring of ZESA and "decommissioning and re-purposing of small thermal power stations," including Bulawayo power station and Harare power station. The power stations had reportedly not been generating any electricity for at least a week.

According to reporting from January and February 2024, some Bulawayo residents opposed plans to decommission the power station and instead were calling for its rehabilitation. The Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association reportedly warned that the plant's decommissioning would result in "massive job losses."

In February 2024, ZESA had reportedly begun decommissioning Bulawayo power station and Harare power station, citing the plants' old age and the growing costs of running coal-fired generators as reasons for closing the plants.

Ownership battle

In September 2022, a legal ownership battle between ZPC and the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) was ongoing. The BCC claimed that they had legal authority over the power station and demanded US$60 million should they release their right for the facility. ZPC maintained that based on the Electricity Act Chapter 13:19, all power stations in Zimbabwe shall belong to Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) Holdings.

In March 2023, it was reported that the BCC was conducting public consultations to get opinions from residents on how to proceed in negotiations with ZPC. Residents apparently expressed they wanted the BCC to evaluate the power station’s lifespan and capacity before deciding on retaining the plant or transferring it to ZPC.

An April 2023 article reported that the BCC wanted to retain ownership of the power station and were looking for investment partners to revive the plant.

Financing

Previously proposed US$110 million in debt from the Export-Import Bank of India (US$87 million) and the Government of India (US$23 million) was cancelled in 2019, according to IJ Global.

Iconic cooling towers

The power station's cooling towers helped give the city of Bulawayo one of its nicknames: Kontuthu Ziyathunqa, a Ndebele phrase for "smoke arising" (aka "The Place with Smoke that Bellows").

In a June 2019 press release, Zimbabwe Power Company provided additional details about the repowering project and addressed controversy surrounding cooling tower upgrades: "It has come to our attention that there is an outcry by the Bulawayo community over the planned demolition of two cooling towers at Bulawayo Power Station (BPS). (...) While ZPC appreciates the sentimental attachment towards the iconic towers by Bulawayo residents, demolition eliminates and ameliorates the aforementioned hazards thereby ensuring continued electricity generation in a safe environment, and full restoration of the 'Kontuthu Ziyathunqa' identity through refurbishment of cooling towers 3, 4, 5 and 6 which is to be done in support of the repowering project." In July 2019, reporting highlighted that certain aspects of the repowering project continued to be contested.

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.