Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority has converted 99 percent of its consumer base to prepayment systems while equipping 65 percent with advanced smart monitoring devices, a transformation that acting chief executive Cletus Nyachowe credits with stabilizing revenue collection after years of crippling arrears. The utility previously sold power at rates as low as two or three cents per kilowatt hour despite procurement costs exceeding nine cents, creating massive debt, particularly from large postpaid accounts that Nyachowe characterized as the primary operational challenge before late 2023.
The shift enables enforcement of cost-reflective pricing and provides real-time tampering alerts, though Nyachowe urged parliamentarians during a Hwange Thermal Power Station visit to strengthen penalties beyond the current decade-long prison sentences for infrastructure sabotage. Management aims to complete universal migration to prepaid or smart metering as part of broader efforts toward financial sustainability.
The shift enables enforcement of cost-reflective pricing and provides real-time tampering alerts, though Nyachowe urged parliamentarians during a Hwange Thermal Power Station visit to strengthen penalties beyond the current decade-long prison sentences for infrastructure sabotage. Management aims to complete universal migration to prepaid or smart metering as part of broader efforts toward financial sustainability.
