Zimbabwe: Electricity Tariff Goes Up By 12.3 %

Electricity consumers in Zimbabwe will be paying more for electricity effective January 1, 2022.

Consumers will now pay as much as 12.3 per cent more, according to Zimbabwe’s Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA), citing section 53 of the Electricity Act.

According to a report by esi-Africa, families on pre-paid meters, who buy 200 units of electricity per month, will pay $1265.11 including the six per cent rural electrification levy, up from just under $1127.

There are five bands of discounted tariffs before the full $14.31 a unit comes into effect on all purchases over 400 units, although consumers can only have the advantage of the discounts on their first purchase each month. Subsequent purchases are charged at the full price.

The first 50 units cost $2.38 each, before the rural levy. So the full 50 will cost a domestic consumer on a pre-paid meter $126.14 including the rural electrification levy.

The 50 units are considered the bare minimum that a family needs for essential purposes and assume that they do not heat water for washing with electricity.

Consumers on post-paid meters will pay similar charges plus an additional $35.68 monthly fixed charge. The fixed charge covers the extra administration costs with a meter that is not prepaid and, at times, the complications and costs of recovering a bad debt.

Source: https://energynewsafrica.com