Zimplats, Zimbabwe’s largest platinum producer, is on track to deliver its US$54m Phase 2A solar project by June 2027, a move that will significantly bolster the miner’s renewable energy capacity and strengthen its drive towards sustainable operations.
The 45MW plant will lift the company’s total installed solar generation capacity to 80MW, enhancing energy self-sufficiency and reducing dependence on conventional power sources.
Under its long-term energy strategy, Zimplats plans to add the remaining 105MW before 2030, creating a combined 185MW solar power portfolio that is expected to reshape energy consumption within Zimbabwe’s mining industry.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Chamber of Mines of Zimbabwe Annual Conference last week, Zimplats managing director Dr Stanley Segula said the company remains firmly on course to deliver the next phase of the project within schedule.
“We are aiming to complete the 45MW by this time next year. Given the pace at which we are moving, we will definitely meet the first-half 2027 deadline. With the US$54m capital injection in place, we are already undertaking feasibility studies for the next solar project as we target to complete the remaining power requirements within the next few years,” Dr Segula said.
He said the full 185MW solar project would significantly reduce the company’s carbon footprint, diversify its energy mix and lessen exposure to power supply volatility.
The renewable energy initiative aligns with the government’s ambition of building a US$12bn mining industry and attaining upper middle-income economy status by 2030.
Beyond strengthening Zimplats’ energy security and reducing dependence on the national grid, the project is expected to lower operating costs, create employment opportunities and support environmental sustainability.
The development also reinforces Zimbabwe’s broader clean energy agenda, improves industrial resilience and positions Zimplats among the leading adopters of renewable energy technologies in the mining sector.
The latest investment comes as the platinum producer continues an aggressive capital expenditure programme that has seen it inject US$2.6m into its operations since 2001, including US$1.8bn invested over the past five years alone to fund expansion and beneficiation projects.
Those investments have transformed Zimplats from a relatively small producer at inception into one of Africa’s leading platinum miners.
In remarks delivered on behalf of Zimplats chief executive officer Alex Mhembere, Dr Segula said the extensive investment programme had enabled the company to build a globally competitive operation.
“The company has so far invested US$2.6bn since 2001, with US$1.8bn invested in the last five years. The expansion programme is not simply about increasing output. It is about creating a globally competitive, integrated and sustainable mining business,” Mhembere said.
Under the first phase of expansion between 2006 and 2010, Zimplats invested US$340m in the development of Bimha Mine and the concentrator module plant at Ngezi.
During the second phase between 2011 and 2015, the company invested US$492m, which included the successful rebuilding of Bimha Mine and support for the Community Share Ownership Trust through a US$10m contribution.
Between 2016 and 2020, the company focused on operational stabilisation, optimisation of underground mining activities resolution of mining tenure issues and reinvestment in infrastructure and housing.
From 2021 to 2026, Zimplats committed US$1.8bn towards major projects, including smelter expansion, Bimha Mine upgrades and the commissioning of a 35MW solar power plant. – (Business Times)
