Econet bases its new $250m energy division in Bulawayo

Econet Wireless has chosen Bulawayo as the centre of its $250 million renewable energy business in Zimbabwe, Econet Energy CEO Norman Moyo has said.

Econet’s energy business operates in Zimbabwe as Distributed Power Africa (DPA) Solar and primarily focuses on rooftop solar power systems for commercial and industrial customers.

The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority last year granted Econet a licence to generate its own power, which the company has used to power up its main switch centre in Willowvale and its Harare offices.

Moyo said since the company launched in Zimbabwe last year, it has already new sites including base stations for Econet, offices and factories, as well as a few homes.

“Our solution is very high tech. We have solar panels, battery systems and centralized monitoring by computers.”

Under DPA’s model, customers get installations for free, but pay only for power used.

Last year, Econet founder Strive Masiyiwa announced a plan to invest $250 million into the energy business, as part of the company’s plans to diversify from its core telecoms business.- NewZwire

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