John Mangudya approves merger of ZESA entities into one firm

After decades of messy sprawl, Zimbabwe’s power monopoly is getting folded back into one beast because too many boards and silos were bleeding cash and slowing everything down.

Approvals for the power overhaul

• John Mangudya said green lights are finally locked in.
• The cabinet gave political clearance.
• The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority also signed off.
• Path cleared for restructuring.

What the Mutapa Investment Fund is pushing

• Mutapa Investment Fund is steering the reset.
• Aims to simplify internal machinery.
• Wants leaner operations across electricity delivery.
• Targets lower system-wide costs.

How ZESA got tangled

• ZESA Holdings was split into multiple arms.
• Fragmentation lingered for nearly two decades.
• Spawned layered boards and red tape.
• Efficiency quietly bled out.

Subsidiaries that caused drag

• Zimbabwe Power Company handled generation separately.
• Transmission and distribution sat in another silo.
• The Rural Electrification Agency ran its own lane.
• Powertel and ZENT added side complexity.

Why the old model failed

• Multiple boards inflated expenses.
• Decision-making slowed everywhere.
• Supply chain gaps widened.
• Customers paid for the dysfunction.

Revived the fix from past advice

• Ernst & Young once flagged rebundling as the cure.
• Advice gathered dust for years.
• The government never acted back then.
• Current plan revives that blueprint.

What the new structure looks like

• ZESA Private Limited will own everything outright.
• Former subsidiaries become internal units.
• Control recenters under one roof.
• Streamlining becomes the operating logic.