By Kudzanai Chimonera
Government ministries, local authorities and parastatals owed the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) about US$188 million as of February 2026, placing further financial strain on the power utility.
The debt was raised in the Senate during debate on the country’s energy security report, with Senator Nonhlanhla Mlotshwa questioning how ZESA could be expected to achieve financial stability when Government institutions themselves remain among its major debtors.
“The report also reveals another troubling fact. Government ministries, local authorities and parastatals reportedly owed approximately US$188 million as of February 2026,” Mlotshwa said.
She said Government could not demand financial viability from ZESA while failing to ensure that public institutions settled their electricity bills.
“Government cannot demand that ZESA becomes financially viable while Government institutions themselves are among the major debtors,” she said.
According to Mlotshwa, unpaid bills were worsening ZESA’s financial challenges at a time when the utility requires significant resources to maintain its network, procure equipment and purchase critical spares.
“If Government departments consume electricity, they must budget for electricity. If parastatals consume electricity, they must pay,” she said.
The Senator said it was contradictory for authorities to criticise ZESA over shortages of funds for maintenance and infrastructure while allowing substantial electricity debts to accumulate.
“We cannot continuously complain that the utility does not have money for spares and allow hundreds of millions in bills to remain unpaid,” Mlotshwa said.
She also highlighted ZESA’s US$616.6 million legacy debt, describing the figure as a major burden on the utility.
“The report further identifies ZESA legacy debt at approximately US$616.6 million. That is enormous,” she said.
While supporting proposals to restructure the legacy debt, Mlotshwa warned that debt restructuring alone would not resolve the underlying weaknesses that have contributed to ZESA’s financial distress.
“Restructuring the debt cannot become an excuse to ignore the structural weakness that created financial distress,” she said.
She called for stronger revenue collection, reduced electricity losses, improved infrastructure management and decisive action against vandalism and procurement-related challenges.
“We must deal with revenue collection. We must deal with electricity losses. We must deal with efficient infrastructure. We must deal with vandalism. We must deal with procurement, and we must deal with Government debtors,” she said.
Mlotshwa further called for stronger management and accountability across the electricity sector, warning that failure to address the structural problems could see ZESA accumulate another unsustainable debt burden.
“We must ensure professional management and accountability throughout the electricity sector. Otherwise, we will restructure today and accumulate another unsustainable debt tomorrow,” she said.