Jindal Africa’s $455M Hwange Refurbishment Deal Revitalises Zimbabwe’s Industrial Power Supply
India’s Jindal Africa, the continent focused arm of Jindal Steel, sealed a landmark $455 million, 15-year concession deal on September 17, 2025, to refurbish Zimbabwe’s Hwange thermal power station, a 920-megawatt coal-fired facility that stands as the backbone of the nation’s industrial energy supply. This agreement, announced by Energy Minister July Moyo, marks a pivotal enterprise move in Zimbabwe’s power sector, where Jindal will finance, rehabilitate, and operate six ageing units over four years, recovering its investment through electricity sales and injecting reliability into a market plagued by chronic shortages.
Jindal Africa’s involvement builds on its established footprint in Zimbabwe, where it operates a 1.5 million-tonne steel plant in Victoria Falls, supplying construction and mining sectors with $200 million in annual output. The Hwange project will restore the station’s full capacity, currently operating at 50% due to decades of underinvestment, enabling it to generate 7,000 GWh annually and support Zimbabwe’s $15 billion industrial base. CEO Naveen Jindal emphasized the strategic fit, stating, “This isn’t just a refurbishment, it’s a catalyst for Zimbabwe’s builders to power their ambitions without interruption.”
The deal accelerates a revival in Zimbabwe’s energy enterprise landscape, where private players are stepping in to fill gaps left by state limitations. Hwange, operational since 1983, has seen output drop to 500 MW amid equipment failures, forcing industries like mining, Zimbabwe’s $5 billion export driver, to rely on costly diesel generators. Jindal’s plan includes upgrading turbines and boilers with modern coal-handling systems, boosting efficiency by 30% and reducing downtime from 40% to 10%. This will directly benefit enterprise clients, including ferrochrome producers like ZimAlloys, which consume 200 MW daily.
Jindal’s competitive positioning is strengthened by its integrated model, combining power generation with steel production to create a self-sustaining industrial chain. The company’s Victoria Falls plant, which employs 1,500 workers, will source coal from Hwange, cutting costs by 15% and enabling $100 million in new contracts for downstream manufacturing. Rivals like Intratrek, a Chinese firm involved in Hwange’s Unit 7 expansion, focus on greenfield projects, but Jindal’s refurbishment expertise, drawn from Indian operations, gives it an edge in cost-effective upgrades, with the four-year timeline minimising disruption.
The project’s execution will create 2,000 construction jobs and 500 ongoing roles in operations, while fostering ancillary enterprise in maintenance and logistics. Zimbabwe’s mining sector, accounting for 12% of GDP, stands to gain $1 billion in productivity from stable power, with ferroalloy exports projected to rise 20%.
Jindal Africa’s Hwange deal is more than infrastructure—it’s a blueprint for industrial resilience, empowering Zimbabwe’s leaders to fuel sustained growth.
