Power cuts: Price of candles up 100pct

via Power cuts: Price of candles up 100pct – New Zimbabwe 13/10/2015

“YOU never let a serious crisis go to waste,” said former top aide to US president Barack Obama, Rahm Emanuel, advice that enterprising Zimbabweans are remembering as the country grapples with power cuts.

Over the past three weeks, households across the country have been experiencing 19 hours of load-shedding, some receiving power supplies only between midnight and 4 a.m.

Leading mining companies have been told to reduce power use by 40 percent while one major user – Sable Chemicals – was totally switched off resulting in 500 workers losing their jobs.

But the crisis has presented an opportunity for retailers and the multitudes of vendors forced onto the streets due to the lack of formal employment.

Most have immediately hiked prices of candles by as much as 100%, in a development that will hit the poor who can’t afford generators or solar power.

Worse still, residents complain that the candles are of poor quality and do not last long.

NewZimbabwe.com visited some supermarkets central Harare and discovered that a packet of six candles that was being sold for 0.80cents a few days ago has gone up to between $1.80 and $2.00.

On the other hand tuck-shops in high density suburbs who were selling the same packet of six candles for $1.00 are now demanding $2.00.

On street corners, the ever-enterprising vendors are also taking advantage of residents desperate for light. They now sell the candles at 0.50c each, making brisk business.

“Since the power cuts intensified, demand for candles has go up; so the price has since gone up as well,” said Levi, a tuck shop assistant.

“It’s all about demand, it’s our time to make money because zvichapera manje, manje (it will soon be over).”

However, some residents complained that the candles were of poor quality.

“We are being short changed, these candles are so feeble and only burn for an hour or so,” said one woman.

“And the branding is so confusing because it is more or less the same, you wouldn’t know which one is better.”

A manager at Crowne Supermarket at Machipisa Shopping Centre said it makes business sense to push up prices for a product in demand.

“We have two different suppliers of candles – big companies institutions and SMEs (small-to-medium sized firms) – and, so far, they have managed to keep us going,” she said.

“But as demand increased and we saw it fit to increase our prices; nothing wrong with that.”

She added: “Suppliers will soon change their prices but we have enough stock. We will maximise on power supply problems.”

The government blames the power crisis on low water levels at Kariba Dam which have reduced the amount of electricity generated by a power station there by a third to 475 megawatts (MW)

Power utility ZESA says it is in discussions with regional counterparts to import more power while new projects to improve local generation will only come on stream in 2018.