The case has already led President Mnangagwa to dismiss Energy Minister Joram Gumbo, replaced in this post by Fortune Chasi who was previously in Transport. The country has experienced the most serious load shedding in three years. The economy is sluggish and some factories have had to suspend their activity. The inhabitants, for their part, are deprived of power for a good part of the day. These energy restriction measures are likely to fuel the anger of the population already confronted for several months with shortages of gasoline and food products.

Power cuts between 5:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m., then between 5:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., the Zimbabwean electricity company ZETDC said. Employers were openly concerned about the electricity rationing measures imposed by the national company.

"If we lose several hours of activity per day, we will no longer be able to cover our costs," warned this week, the president of the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries, Sifelani Jabangwe.

Operators in the mining sector believe that they should be spared from load shedding, as they recall that production stoppages are very expensive. The mining sector accounts for 2/3 of the country's export earnings, or $4.8 billion in revenue in 2018.

In the past, the big producers of gold and platinum had to resort to importing electricity directly from neighboring countries such as Mozambique or South Africa to run their mining operations.

In 2016, the country had already experienced a comparable crisis. This year again, it was the low water level of the Kariba hydroelectric dam that led to a drop in electricity production.

Experts also point to the dilapidation of the network and the national company ensures that 1,600 of its electrical transformers were vandalized throughout the country, just last year.

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