Monarch ventures into solar geysers
MONARCH Steel yesterday commissioned a solar geyser manufacturing plant in Bulawayo in direct response to Government’s call for the adoption of solar heating technology that will assist the country to save 300 megawatts.
The company is a division of Tregers Group of Companies. In a speech read on his behalf by his Permanent Secretary, Engineer Partson Mbiriri, Energy and Power Development Minister, Dr Samuel Undenge, commended Monarch Steel for their conversion from manufacturing electric geysers to solar geysers.
“I am delighted that Tregers made a presentation (to manufacture solar geysers) to us in 2015 and we were encouraged by what they said.
“But of course we listen to many, many presentations in our offices in Harare and there are some consultants whose business is to look for such meetings for presentations, they charge and they disappear but not with Tregers,” said Dr Undenge.
“I am delighted that l am here to witness the conversion that has taken place from manufacturing of electric geysers to the manufacturing of solar geysers,” he said.
Monarch Steel stopped manufacturing electric geysers years back due to viability concerns. In 2015, the Government launched the solar geyser programme as part of measures to conserve energy.
“There are about 214 000 electric geysers already installed in houses and we want those geysers replaced by solar geysers. In terms of new structures, we want all new structures to have solar geysers whether it’s a hotel, a school or house we want solar geysers,” said Dr Undenge.
He said the solar heating initiative has a national potential of saving 300 megawatts that was equivalent to a virtual power station at no cost of building a generation plant.
At present Zimbabwe has a power generation deficit and going solar, Dr Undenge said, could fill the gap and also give local manufacturers a market to tap into.
The Zimbabwe Power Company indicated on its website that as of yesterday the country’s power generation was at 1 116MW against a national demand of 2 200MW.
“It is gratifying that Monarch Steel is one of our local companies that has responded to this call and that is why we are here today and l would like to highly commend Monarch Steel for their swift response. Usually private sector companies scratch their nose when they hear Government talks.
“But certainly not in this instance, we have worked with them very well and the product is something that we knew was coming and we were anxious on the timing and they ran faster than us.
“Our hope was that this would be ready at a time when the pilot solar heating is ready to be launched,” he said without giving a time frame when it would be ready,
Speaking at the same occasion Small to Medium Enterprises and Co-operative Development Minister Sithembiso Nyoni said:
“We are here to support our partner as Government. This project is being commissioned today as a direct response to the call by Government to use solar energy. You called upon companies in this country to manufacturer solar geyser so that we save energy.
“This project will enable the country to do away with electricity load shedding and I therefore call upon Zesa to engage them now to start supplying solar gysers to Zesa and Zimbabwe at large as well as exporting. By supporting Tregers you will be creating jobs”, she said.
In an interview, Monarch Steel managing director Mr Fritzpatrick Mawovera said the new solar geyser plant has created 30 jobs.
“We have created 30 new jobs and we have a capacity to manufacture 50 geysers in a single shift. We have invested $150 000 into the plant with an additional plant coming and depending on the demand for the geysers, we will probably double the number of people presently employed,” he said.
Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs Nomthandazo Eunice Moyo, Mayor Councillor Martin Moyo, Industry and Commerce Ministry regional officer for Bulawayo Mrs Mary Chingonzo and Treger management team, among others attended the commissioning.
After the commissioning of the plant, the officials also toured Kango Products in Belmont, another division of Tregers. — @ okazunga.