REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA

MINISTRY OF ENERGY
Madam Speaker,
I wish to thank you for this opportunity to give a
Ministerial Statement on the hydrology situation at the
Kariba Dam, and more importantly, the measures we
are undertaking to mitigate the impact on low power
generation threat.
Madam Speaker,
The Kariba Dam is the largest man-made reservoir in
the world with a holding capacity of 181 billion cubic
meters of water. The Kariba Reservoir is the sole
source of water for the two hydropower stations for
the two nations Mother Zambia and Neighbouring
Zimbabwe. The combined generating capacity for the
Kariba North and South bank power stations is 2,130
megawatts (MW), that is;
• The Kariba North Bank Hydro-Power Station
operated by ZESCO on the Zambian side with an
installed capacity of 1,080 MW and,

• The Kariba South Bank Hydro-Power Station

operated by Zimbabwe Power Corporation (ZPC)
on the Zimbabwean side with an installed
capacity of 1,050 MW.

Page 2 of 7
In order to efficiently manage this iconic water
resource, the Governments of Zambia and Zimbabwe
established the Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) with a
mandate to regulate and determine the quantum of
water usage by the two power utilities to generate
electricity at the Kariba Complex. This function
ensures that there is timely and equitable regulation
of water utilization at any given point.

Madam Speaker,
The Kariba Lake is designed to operate between
475.50m and 488.50m of water above sea level (asl)
for purposes of hydropower generation. The water
allocation is done considering the need to sustain
reservoir operations at Kariba.
For the year 2022, the ZRA allocated a combined total
of Forty-Five Billion Cubic Meters (45 BCM) of water
to ZESCO and ZPC for power generation at the
Kariba Complex.
The allocation was to be shared equally between
ZESCO Limited and Zimbabwe Power Company
(ZPC) with each utility to utilize 22.5 Billion Cubic
Meters of water respectively for the year 2022.

Page 3 of 7
Madam Speaker,
During the year 2022, the Lake’s water level has been
decreasing steadily on account of low inflows from the
mainstream Zambezi River and its tributaries.
Further, the situation has been worsened due to the
overutilization of water for sustained power
generation which has resulted in low water levels at
the lake.
As of 28th November 2022, the Kariba lake water
levels stood at 476.09m above sea level,
representing only 4.12% of usable water storage for
power generation.
The low water level situation in the lake Kariba
threatens the power generation for both the Kariba
North Bank Hydropower station (Zambian side) and
Kariba South Bank Hydropower station (Zimbabwean
side).
It is projected that if the current power generation and
subsequent water utilization continues, the remaining
water for power generation at the Kariba complex,
also referred to as live storage, will not be sufficient
for power generation beyond mid-December 2022.

Page 4 of 7
Madam Speaker,
Against this background, there is need to implement
measures aimed at rationing the water in the lake in
order to avoid a complete shutdown of electricity
generation activities at the Kariba Complex.
he proposed measures will be phased and revisited
from time to time over the next four (4) months in
order to ensure security of electricity supply and
mitigate the impact on the economy. These
measures include:

1. A Directive by Zambezi River Authority

Zambezi River Authority has with immediate effect,
directed Zimbabwe Power Company to immediately
ensure that Power generation activities at the South
Bank Power Station are reduced to a maximum of
300MW instead of 600MW, while ZESCO Limited will
reduce generation at Kariba North Bank Power
Station to a maximum of 800MW, until further review
of the substantive Hydrological outlook at lake Kariba
will be undertaken.

Page 5 of 7
2. Power Generation optimization
ZESCO will optimize generation at all its hydro power
stations in Zambia (Kariba North Bank, Victoria Falls,
Small Hydros, Kafue Gorge and Kafue Gorge Lower
power stations). It is expected that this will
complement the generation from the Kariba Complex
to Mid-January 2023 when the water inflows are
expected to start improving in the Kariba reservoir.

3. Fast tracking Generation Projects/other

sources
The Government will fast track the development of
generation projects in order to increase the
robustness of the energy sector to adverse impacts
of climate change. We shall also tap from existing
generation which are operated by private players with
the view to optimize power dispatch to mitigate the
impact of the reduced generation from the Kariba
Complex. Additionally, should the situation warrant it,
consideration shall be made to import power from the
Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) when available.

Page 6 of 7
4. Diversification
Scale up diversification of the power generation mix
by accelerating the development of alternative green
and renewable energy sources, including projects
such as the Global Energy Transfer Feed in Tariff
(GET FiT) Zambia project which has a bankable
portfolio of six (6) solar Photovoltaic (PV) projects
amounting to 120MW peak, the recently advertised
3x50MW peak of solar power plants developments.

5. Load Management
ZESCO will implement a load management regime
aimed at rationing power generation at the Kariba
Complex to avoid a complete shutdown. This will be
done with the view to minimize the impact on key
economic sectors as well as preservation of the
integrity of generation units at the Kariba Complex.

We anticipate that based on the water levels, this

will translate into a load management regime
starting on 15th December 2022 of up to a
maximum of six (6) hours daily until the water
levels improve.

Madam speaker, I thank you

Page 7 of 7