Zimbabwe has been grappling with power shortages for years. The country’s power producer ZPC produces only about half of what the country needs. This has resulted in frequent power cuts, making life difficult for many Zimbabweans. In recent years, the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) has been exploring different solutions to address this problem, including the use of smart meters.

What is a Smart Meter?

A smart meter is an advanced metering system that measures electricity usage in real-time and sends the information to the ZETDC automatically. Unlike traditional meters, smart meters do not require manual reading, which means that there is no need for meter readers to visit homes and businesses to take readings. Instead, the smart meter communicates directly with the power company, providing real-time data about electricity usage.

Advantages of Smart Meters

Smart meters have many advantages over traditional meters. One of the main advantages is that they can help power companies to manage their networks more efficiently. By providing real-time data about electricity usage, smart meters can help power companies to identify areas of high demand and to take steps to reduce demand in those areas. This can help to prevent blackouts and other problems that can result from overloading the grid.

Smart meters can also help customers to manage their energy usage more effectively. By providing real-time data about electricity usage, smart meters can help customers to identify areas of high energy consumption and to take steps to reduce their usage. This can help to reduce energy bills and to promote more sustainable energy consumption practices.

ZESA’s Smart Meter Rollout Programme

ZESA has been rolling out smart meters in different parts of the country as part of its efforts to address the power challenges facing Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC), a subsidiary of ZESA, launched the extension of its prepaid, smart meter roll-out programme in Bulawayo last week. The programme aims to transfer ZESA customers from postpaid meters to prepaid and smart meters.

Lloyd Jaji, the ZETDC Western Region general manager, said that the move to prepaid and smart meters will maximise revenue collection and ease the country’s power challenges. He added that this is a move that forms key building blocks toward a smart grid.

The ZETDC Western Region has almost a 200,000 customer base, with a total of 135,000 installed prepaid meters. This gives them a balance of 40,363 points still to be installed. The region will also be rolling out prepaid meters to over 36,000 customers who have been on looped connections for a long time, that is load-limited customers.

The programme, which is nationwide, was first rolled out in Harare last month. ZESA plans to move all its customers from postpaid meters to prepaid and smart meters. By the end of the second quarter, every client on the postpaid platform is expected to have been moved to the prepaid system.

Smart Meters Alone Will Not Solve ZESA’s Challenges

While smart meters are an important step towards addressing Zimbabwe’s power challenges, they are not a panacea. Zimbabwe’s power sector faces a range of other problems that are not going to be solved by smart meters. For example, the ZETDC grid is plagued by multiple failures made worse by the rainy season, equipment theft, and foreign currency shortages. These problems require a range of different solutions, including investment in infrastructure, improved management practices, and more sustainable energy production methods.

When ZESA introduced prepaid meters there were praised as the ultimate solution to our still ongoing power woes. Proponents claimed these would boost revenue for ZETDC and help us import more power. This has not materialised again because there are other problems preventing ZESA from easily solving Zimbabwe’s power cuts. These include corruption with higher-ups who are on fixed and post-paid meters continuing to get preferential treatment, not prioritising projects meant to boost power generation capacity and a general lack of will from the government.

Conclusion

ZESA’s smart meter rollout programme is a step in the right direction towards addressing Zimbabwe’s power challenges. Smart meters have many advantages over traditional meters and can help power companies and customers to manage their energy usage more effectively. However, smart meters alone are not going to solve the power issues we face. You can expect to spend hours and days in the dark-smart meter or no smart meter.