Opening a business premises with no power, or with a supply that cannot run your equipment, is an expensive way to learn how connections work. This checklist covers what to establish, in what order, and when to start.
Before you sign the lease or buy
This is the stage where money is saved or lost, and it is routinely skipped.
Establish whether the premises already has a supply, and of what type and capacity. An existing three-phase supply is a significant asset; a single-phase supply at a premises needing three-phase is a significant cost.
Establish whether any existing supply is active or disconnected, and whether there are outstanding arrears attached to the property, since these can affect reconnection.
Establish how far the nearest infrastructure is, and whether spare transformer capacity exists nearby. Two otherwise identical premises can differ enormously in connection cost on this basis alone.
A landlord describing premises as having power is not the same as having the supply your equipment needs. Ask specifically.
Work out what supply you actually need
Build an equipment schedule: everything electrical you will install, with ratings. Then have the demand calculated properly, applying diversity and accounting for motor starting.
This determines whether you need single-phase at 230V or three-phase at 400V, and at what capacity. Both errors are costly: over-declaring inflates your capital contribution and may force a larger transformer, while under-declaring leaves you unable to run your equipment and facing an upgrade.
See what a load assessment involves and three-phase connection costs.
Establish the cost before committing
Get the connection costed before you commit to the premises, not afterwards. The components are set out in our full cost breakdown, and the quotation itself is explained line by line in why quotes come out high.
Budget separately for your internal installation — wiring, distribution board, earthing and the certificate of compliance from a registered electrician. This sits outside the ZETDC quotation and catches out businesses repeatedly.
Apply early
Work backwards from your opening date, allowing generously. A connection requiring a transformer or line extension takes considerably longer than a straightforward service connection — see realistic timelines.
Lodge a complete application first time. Missing documents are the most common cause of delay, and the checklist is in connection requirements.
Plan for the running cost, not just the connection
This is where businesses are most often caught out after the fact.
Commercial tariffs frequently include a maximum demand charge based on your highest measured demand, not only your consumption. A single brief peak — several motors starting together, for instance — can set a charge that persists on your bill.
Managing when equipment starts, using soft starters on larger motors, and correcting a poor power factor can all reduce this materially. These are design decisions best made before installation rather than remedial work afterwards.
Check the supply on the day it is energised
Do not assume a new connection is correct because it is live.
On three-phase supplies, confirm phase rotation before running motors — reversed rotation runs pumps and compressors backwards and can damage them. Check voltage under load, particularly where the service run is long, since voltage drop should generally be held within about 5 percent of nominal. Confirm the meter is recording correctly and is registered to your account.
Problems identified on day one are far easier to resolve than problems raised months later.
Getting it right first time
The businesses that connect smoothly are those that establish the supply position before committing to premises, size the load properly, apply early with complete documentation, and design for the running cost as well as the connection.
The ones that struggle are those that treat electricity as something to sort out after the lease is signed.
Send us your equipment schedule and premises details and we will tell you what supply you need, what it should cost, and how long it will realistically take. See also how to apply and why applications get rejected.
Approved tariffs are published by the Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority.
MyZesaConnect is an independent electrical consultancy. We are not ZESA, ZETDC or ZERA.
Questions to put to the landlord or seller in writing
Verbal assurances about power are worth very little once you have signed. Put these in writing and keep the reply.
Is there an existing supply, and is it single-phase or three-phase? What is its capacity? Is it currently connected and active? Are there arrears attached to the property? Whose name is the account in, and what is required to transfer it? Has the internal installation been certified, and when?
A seller or landlord who cannot answer these is telling you something useful in itself.
Taking over an existing supply
Where a supply already exists, the process is usually a transfer rather than a new connection — considerably cheaper and faster.
What catches businesses out is arrears. Outstanding amounts attached to a property can affect your ability to take over the account, and discovering this after signing a lease is an unwelcome way to start trading.
Establish the position before committing, and where arrears exist, establish clearly in writing who is responsible for clearing them.
Certificate of compliance
Your internal installation must be completed by a registered electrician and certified. This is not optional, it is not part of the ZETDC quotation, and leaving it until the supply is ready wastes time you have already spent waiting.
Have the internal work done while the connection is being processed, so that energisation and occupation can follow immediately rather than sequentially.
[…] agreement. If your project is a business, farm, or estate connection, also check our guides on business electricity connections and farm electricity connections for how transformer procurement fits into the wider connection […]