WATER levels at Kariba Dam have remained low, with a marginal increase of 8% since January, despite recent incessant rains that pounded most parts of the country over the past two months, NewsDay has learnt.
BY XOLISANI NCUBE
Latest dam level statistics released by the Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) indicate that the country’s main source of hydro-electricity power was now at 17%, compared to the 32% during the same period last year.
“The lake levels continued rising during the week under review, with the lake level closing at 477,96m on March 23, 2016, which is lower than the level that was recorded last year (482,21m) on the same date,” a statement from ZRA read.
In January, the dam’s water levels dropped to as low as 11% due to erratic rains received this past rainy season, forcing ZRA to reduce water allocation for generation of energy to both Zimbabwe and Zambia.
The World Bank forecast in December last year stated that the power deficit would linger at least until 2018 and possibly up to 2020.
With some areas being hit by load shedding, Zesa Holdings has warned that it would reduce power generation from the current 475 megawatts (MW) to 280MW this year.
Zimbabwe’s electricity generation is estimated to be around 1 077MW against a national requirement in excess of 2 200MW.
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The current power crisis has seen the government ordering major mining companies and other large electricity consumers to reduce consumption by up to 25%.
