via Lack of budgetary allocations forces Zesa to borrow $73m – NewsDay Zimbabwe December 16, 2014
ZESA Holdings has not received its budgetary allocations as stated in the blue book since 2013, the company has said.
In a statement presented before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy for the 2015 post budget analysis recently, the power utility said lack of disbursement of budgetary support from Treasury had forced the company to rely on loans to fund its projects.
The power utility said it was now being forced to borrow $73 million to fund capital projects at different power stations in Hwange, Kariba, Harare, Mutare and Gairezi as well as upgrading its plant and machinery.
“A total of $1,047 billion will be required for power infrastructure projects in 2015, and of this amount, $173 million will be from the group’s own resources, while the remainder will be grants and borrowings,” the Zesa report said.
“The support from the fiscus has been declining over the years and the last support was received in 2012.”
According to the report, although Zesa was allocated $49,5 million in 2012, only $15,77 million was disbursed. In 2013, they were allocated $15 million in the blue book and in 2014, $18,2 million, but not a single cent was disbursed.
“The limited fiscal space and own resources has necessitated project financing and/or investment funding through joint ventures and loan financing. The group aims to borrow from export credit agencies as well as local and international financial institutions.”
Some of the institutions from which Zesa intends to borrow include China Exim Bank, Stanbic Bank, Afrexim Bank, IDBZ bonds, Zim Fund, India Exim Bank, Preferential Trade Area, Public Private Partnerships and OPEC funding for international development.
“We have high debt due to failure by some customers to settle their bills, especially local authorities and parastatals. The total debt at the end of August 2014 was $947 million, of which Sable Chemicals alone owes $107 million. This drastically limits the availability of own resources for implementing projects,” Zesa said.
COMMENTS
Sometimes we forget the basic technical management of resources leading to more financial losses.As I write my area has not had electricity for more than 24 hours due to what they claim is a transformer failure due to overheating because it has no cooling oil.Surely,this is clear negligence and poor workmanship.The company is now losing thousands of dollars per day.
This type of fault should never happen if the technicians did their scheduled maintenance to the equipment.This is like driving a vehicle without engine oil.Only fools do that and they end up costing the company heavily.Never fool yourselves by thinking you are fixing the public because you might end up without jobs and those free electricity allowances.I really feel for those families without backup power supply.
Zesa can ask or receive billions of dollars but they will always be financial broke due to attitudes and lack of professionalism in their business execution.What they call minor faults accumulate to huge faults with serious revenue losses.
Doubt the thieving scumbags do not know about “basic technical management of resources leading to more financial losses” all they seem to care about is loot from the coffers and abuse the funds that others have to pay for
Total collapse is very close, no electricity and no water might finally get people to act on this bunch of thieves that has destroyed every corner of a once robust economy.
Useless leaders
There is an article on 15 December ON THIS SITE where this company was criticised for doing DISGRACE GUCCI POSTERS – then we read the heading “Lack of Budgetary Allocations forces Zesa to borrow $73m” – no care in the …… world for the ordinary people because it is run by the thieving scumbags
This is a part of what the article said
“THE Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (Zesa) has received a barrage of attacks from political, labour, human rights and governance commentators for funding advertisements in the public media congratulating First Lady Grace Mugabe for her appointment as Zanu PF secretary for Women’s League.
Analysts said Zesa was a public institution and it was not right for them to spend public money for partisan political party “interests.