Business is singing the blues over Zesa

BUSINESS is dismayed that authorities continue to approve power utility Zesa Holdings (Zesa)’s electricity tariff hikes without ensuring increased energy supply in the country.
At the same time, worried captains of industry and commerce also emphasised this week that business did not have issues with cost-reflective electricity price increases, which guaranteed supply.
This comes after the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (Zera) recently granted Zesa subsidiary, the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC), another tariff increase of two US cents per kilowatt hour — a rise of just under 19 percent for domestic consumers.
“Our view, which we have expressed to Zera is that industry cannot absorb steep increases, as that affects profitability. We are getting into a very difficult situation.