Zimbabwe To Experience Power Outage As Zambezi River Authority Withdraws Power Generation

The prolonged power shortage experienced in Zimbabwe is set to worsen as the agency in charge of the biggest dam in Southern Africa has ordered the suspension of electric power generation to the country as a result of a water shortage.

The Zambezi River Authority, in a letter dated 25th November 2022, informed the Zimbabwe Power Company that the Kariba South Hydropower Station had used more than its 2022 water allocation. It also noted that the accessible storage of the Kariba Dam was just 4.6% filled.

The letter reads in part, “The Zambezi River Authority is left with no choice but to firmly guide that generation activities at the South Bank Power Station are wholly suspended henceforth until January 2023 when a further review of the substantive hydrological outlook at Kariba will be undertaken.

Zimbabwe has suffered from poor electricity distribution as a result of the low inflow of water into the Kariba Dam. This hasn’t been helped by the weak (as a result of use) coal-knitted Power Stations, which break down at intervals.

The Zambezi River Authority manages the Kariba Dam on behalf of the Zimbabwean and Zambian Governments.