{"id":6126,"date":"2024-11-22T13:52:38","date_gmt":"2024-11-22T13:52:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=6126"},"modified":"2024-11-22T13:52:39","modified_gmt":"2024-11-22T13:52:39","slug":"power-supply-situation-in-zimbabwe-remains-bleak","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/?p=6126","title":{"rendered":"Power Supply Situation in Zimbabwe Remains Bleak"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><br>Business Reporter<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Zimbabwe&#8217;s power supply outlook remains bleak in the short term, primarily due to critically low water levels at the Kariba Dam, which has dropped to below 3% of usable capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This situation is compounded by the expectation that significant inflows will not occur until February\/March 2025. The dam, which is crucial for hydropower generation, typically receives its peak inflows around May\/June, making a quick recovery unlikely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Energy and Power Development Minister, Edgar Moyo, remains optimistic, asserting that improvements will come with the refurbishment of Hwange Power Station and reduced demand during the festive season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the current peak demand for power is about 2,200 megawatts (MW), while the installed capacity is 2,700 MW. The deficit is largely due to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Low water levels at Kariba Dam<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Frequent breakdowns at Hwange Power Station, exacerbated by aging infrastructure and insufficient funding.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>As of now, Hwange, which has a rated capacity of 1,520 MW, is producing only about 889 MW, significantly below its potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) reported that as of November 11, 2024, the water level at Kariba Dam was at 2.40%, a stark decline from 10.72% the previous year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This has led to Zimbabwe generating just 100 MW from Kariba, highlighting the severity of the situation. Neighboring Zambia has also halted production from the dam&#8217;s northern bank, resulting in power cuts lasting up to 21 hhour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite forecasts of normal to above-normal rainfall for the region, concerns remain that the Kariba catchment may experience below-normal rainfall from October 2024 to January 2025, potentially impacting future inflows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The ZRA has allocated 27 billion cubic meters of water for power generation in 2025, which may not be sufficient for optimal operation of the Kariba South facility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Minister Moyo mentioned ongoing efforts to enhance power generation, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Refurbishing old generators at Hwange<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Developing independent renewable energy projects<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>However, experts like former Zesa chief executive Joshua Chifamba caution that while solar energy projects are beneficial, they cannot replace the reliability of thermal power stations. He advocates for a tariff model based on the US dollar to help the state utility manage its financial challenges effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Zimbabwe&#8217;s power crisis is a complex issue influenced by environmental, infrastructural, and economic factors. While short-term solutions are being pursued, significant improvements in power supply may not materialize until mid-2025, necessitating ongoing community and governmental efforts to address the challenges ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Zim GBC News\u00a92024<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Business Reporter Zimbabwe&#8217;s power supply outlook remains bleak in the short term, primarily due to critically low water levels at the Kariba Dam, which has dropped to below 3% of&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6127,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6126","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6126","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6126"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6126\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6128,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6126\/revisions\/6128"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6127"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6126"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6126"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zimgbcnews.co.zw\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6126"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}