The decreasing water levels at Kariba Dam has plunged electricity generation for both Zambia and Zimbabwe, the local utility company has announced.
The two countries’ joint technical committee report issued has indicated the levels of water dropping to 43 percent of the dams’ capacity.
Henry Kapata, Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation (ZESCO) spokesperson recently told media that power generation capacity at the world’s largest man made reservoir has been restricted to about half.
Low power generation will in turn affect the production and operations in mining houses thereby contributing to already existing challenges such as introduced taxes, threats of job cuts and force retirements of miners.
The Kariba Dam is central to energy security in the form of hydro-power electricity generated for Zimbabwe and Zambia and as the Zambezi continues to flow towards Mozambique it flows into the Cahora Bassa Lake and then continues to provide electricity for Mozambique and South Africa.
According to a report by the Institute of Risk Management South Africa (IRMSA), since 2010, Tractebel Engineering has been advising the Zambezi River Authority on matters pertaining to safety, maintenance and satisfactory operation of the dam.
“As the inflows into the Kariba and Kafue Gorge upper reservoirs are lower than the outflows, the reservoirs’ storage is decreasing.”
