Zimbabwe faces power cuts as plant goes on repairs

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's power supply will be cut by up to 250 megawatts over the next two weeks as a major generation plant undergoes maintenance, the country's power utility said on Friday.

The 250 MW cut -- a quarter of current output -- is likely to hit industries and mines battling to recover from years of

economic mismanagement.

ZESA said its power generation subsidiary, the Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) would on Friday begin a routine annual maintenance at the 750 MW Kariba hydro plant that would end after the first week of November.

"The initial phase will result in the loss of 125 MW ... and the national grid will experience a further loss of another 125 MW on October 31," ZESA said in a statement. "The exercise will witness an increase in load shedding."

ZESA said it hoped to ease the power shortages by increasing imports and boosting generation from its Hwange thermal station from the current 300 MW to about 480 MW.

"In the meantime, ZESA will alleviate the situation through increased generation at Hwange Power Station, which is producing about 300 MW but whose capacity can be boosted to 480 MW," it said.

Zimbabwe currently generates about 1,000 MW, about half its requirements, and has struggled to pay for imports mainly from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Mozambique.

The southern African country has endured frequent power cuts as the power utility, weighed down by lack of funding and ageing equipment, has failed to meet demand.