ZimGreenCo seals landmark 25-year solar deal
STAFF WRITER
ZimGreenCo and Dolcin Trading have signed a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) for a 50MW solar photovoltaic plant near Chegutu, in a deal that will establish one of Zimbabwe’s largest grid-connected renewable independent power producer (IPP) projects.
The agreement was signed at the Africa Energy Forum in Cape Town, South Africa, and marks a significant milestone in efforts to expand private-sector participation in Zimbabwe’s electricity sector.
The deal underscores growing investor confidence in Zimbabwe’s renewable energy market and demonstrates the viability of an open-access electricity trading model that allows private power producers to supply large energy consumers through the national grid.
The Dolcin Trading Project, developed by South African renewable energy company Sigma Solar Africa, will sell electricity to ZimGreenCo for large energy users in Zimbabwe.
The project builds on the Systems Operations Agreement signed in 2024 between GreenCo, through its Zimbabwean operating company ZimGreenCo Power Services (Private) Limited, and the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC).
Under the agreement, GreenCo pays ZETDC for system operation services, enabling the transmission of electricity from private generators to end users through the national grid.
Located in Chegutu, Mashonaland West Province, the solar plant is expected to strengthen Zimbabwe’s power supply and support the country’s transition towards cleaner energy sources.
ZimGreenCo managing director Lion Mashiri said the project demonstrates how collaboration between private developers, electricity buyers and the national utility can help address the country’s energy challenges.
“We have always believed that Zimbabwe’s energy security will be built on partnership rather than public purse alone, and on markets that let private power move to where it is needed,” Mashiri said.
“This agreement shows that an open-access regime can work in practice. A privately developed solar plant, a creditworthy offtaker, and the national utility are each playing their part.
“By signing a 25-year PPA on the back of our System Operations Agreement with ZETDC, we are demonstrating a replicable model for bringing new renewable generation onto the Zimbabwean grid and supplying the large energy users who underpin the country’s economy.”
Dolcin Trading director Gareth P. Warner said the long-term agreement was critical for attracting financing.
“A 25-year offtake agreement with a creditworthy buyer is what makes a project of this scale financeable,” Warner said.
He said GreenCo’s structure gives “our investors and lenders the long-term revenue certainty they need and allows the Dolcin Trading plant to advance towards construction and the delivery of clean power to Zimbabwean consumers.”