• Electricity imports rose 43.8% to US$20.12 million in May, lifting the five-month import bill to US$69.19 million
  • Domestic generation improved during 2026, though operating output remains below the level needed to cover peak demand
  • The May bill places foreign-currency funding for electricity at the centre of industrial competitiveness

Harare - Zimbabwe spent US$20.12 million importing electrical energy in May 2026, the highest monthly electricity import bill since September 2024. The payment rose 43.8% from US$13.99 million in April and stood 46.9% above the US$13.70 million recorded in May 2025 according to Zimbabwe Statistics Agent (Zimstat).

Electricity imports reached US$69.19 million during the first five months of 2026, up 38.3% from US$50.04 million in the corresponding period last year. The US$6.13 million increase in May electricity imports accounted for 5.3% of the US$115.4 million rise in Zimbabwe’s total import bill during the month.

Zimbabwe’s total imports reached US$1.08 billion in May, from US$962.2 million in April, widening the goods trade deficit to US$193.7 million. Electricity formed a small share of total imports, while its steep monthly increase placed foreign-currency funding for power procurement back into focus.

The May import bill sits alongside a recovery in domestic electricity production during 2026. Zimbabwe generated 2,788.64GWh in the first quarter, up 14.1% from 2,443.14GWh in the corresponding quarter of 2025. The first-quarter total equates to average domestic production of approximately 31GWh per day.

Hwange Units 7 and 8 produced 1,141.81GWh during the quarter, accounting for 41.0% of total national output. Kariba generated 955.67GWh, while Hwange Units 1 to 6 supplied 535.80GWh and independent power producers delivered 155.36GWh.

ZPC’s end-May daily statistics place domestic maximum supply close to 1.6GW. On 31 May, Hwange produced 1,000MW, Kariba supplied 538MW and IPPs generated 58MW, taking total maximum supply to 1,596MW.

The critical issue sits in the gap between electricity produced across a quarter and the power system’s requirement at its highest-demand periods.

Zimbabwe’s current electricity requirement is not 1,615MW for an entire day it is approximately 2200MW. The 1,615MW figure is the current system peak, meaning the level of power required at the highest-demand point of the day. A daily energy requirement requires a 24-hour demand curve measured in megawatt hours or gigawatt hours, which has not been published alongside the May trade data.

The Southern African Power Pool currently places ZESA’s operating capacity at 1,555MW, against a peak requirement of 1,615MW. The system needs 1,847MW once reserve capacity is included, leaving Zimbabwe with a 292MW shortfall under the reserve-adjusted measure.

This supply position gives electricity imports a clear economic rationale. Domestic generation must cover ordinary consumption, evening demand peaks, maintenance downtime, forced plant outages and reserve requirements. Regional power purchases secure additional firm capacity when the domestic system has little room to absorb a unit failure, a transmission constraint or a rise in industrial demand.

For mining houses, ferrochrome producers, manufacturers, irrigators and commercial property operators, the import bill finances supply continuity that protects production hours, equipment uptime and contractual deliveries. The economic cost of interrupted production can exceed the cost of purchasing imported electricity, particularly for continuous-process industries that carry high restart costs.

The customs data records the United States dollar value of electricity imported under electrical energy imports.It does not state the megawatt hours purchased, suppliers, tariff per megawatt hour or the period in which the electricity was physically delivered. The US$20.12 million May figure can therefore contain a larger power volume, a higher regional tariff, settlement of earlier supply obligations, or a combination of these factors.

Zimbabwe’s structural challenge remains dependable capacity. ZPC has installed generation capacity of 2,640MW, made up of 1,050MW at Kariba, 920MW at Hwange Units 1 to 6 and 670MW at Hwange Units 7 and 8. Dependable capacity sits between 1,200MW and 1,600MW, keeping imports necessary when demand, reserve requirements and plant availability exceed locally available supply.

The National Energy Compact identifies imported electricity as an important component of Zimbabwe’s power supply. It also identifies regional shortages, ZETDC’s ability to pay and transmission capacity as constraints on sustained external procurement.

May’s electricity import bill therefore measures more than a trade-data movement. It measures the foreign-currency cost of securing firm power for an economy whose mining, manufacturing, agriculture and services sectors need uninterrupted electricity to convert output into export earnings and domestic income.

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