LOW WATER LEVELS AT KAFUE GORGE DAM STALLS UPGRADE WORKS

The effects of poor rainfall that was  experienced is the last rain season can not been ignored, and to a larger extent, the pressure on the economy is evidenced through reduced power generation.
Zambia's Power utility, Zesco is currently implementing a national wide four hour load shedding schedule., to ensure that the available water sees the country to the next rain season.
The Kafue Gorge Dam, is currently at 11 percent full compared to 90 percent last year.
Besides the reduced power generation that has subsequently resulted into load shedding, some major upgrade works at the Kafue Gorge Power Station have been suspended.
Station Operations Engineer Lioko Sitali has confirmed that two major project which include the replacement of 330 kilovott power cables and upgrading of the Distributor Control System- DCS.
He said this during a media tour of the power Station organized by the Energy Regulations Board - ERB, the regulators of energy companies.
The plant with a generation capacity of 990 megawatts per hour is currently running at an average of 700 megawatts.
The Kariba hydropower dam that straddles Zambia and Zimbabwe receded to less than 30%.  At the same time last year, it was 77% full and still rising.
This is expected to go on until the next rain season when the dam gets replenished. In the meantime, it is consumers who are paying for alternative energy which may higher than hydro power supplied by the power utility Zesco. Copper producers use more than half of Zambia’s electricity supply and other manufacturing plants have had their cost of production pushed up, and this cost is slapped on the consumer.

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