ZESCO has announced that with water resources approaching the minimum operating level, it faces the imminent risk of depleting the remaining reserves by 14 September this year, which could result in the shutdown of the Kariba North Bank Power Station.
In a statement issued by company spokesperson Matongo Maumbi, Zesco anticipates a significant power supply gap in September, driven by a growing drought-induced hydropower generation deficit.
He said the deficit stands at 1,086 megawatts (MW) for August 2024 and is projected to increase to 1,280 MW in September 2024.
Mr Maumbi explained that the expected power supply gap in September is also attributed to annual plant maintenance by Maamba Energy.
“Maamba Energy, one of the Independent Power Producers with a total installed generation capacity of 300 MW, has scheduled annual plant maintenance to be carried out in phases,” he said.
He said in phase one, from 27 August to 10 September 2024, 150 MW of generation capacity will be unavailable while in phase two, from 16 September to 30 September 2024, an additional 150 MW will be offline.
However, Mr Maumbi noted that Zesco is facing import route constraints, including equipment failure due to faults and acts of vandalism on the Namibian route.
He said the factors are adding strain to the system, particularly during the morning peak demand period from 05:00 to 10:00 and the evening peak from 17:00 to 22:00.
Mr Maumbi said as a mitigation measure, Zesco has secured an additional 200 MW in power imports, effective 1 August 2024, to help alleviate the impact of reduced generation capacity.
“While the imports are critical, they may not be sufficient to fully balance supply and demand,” Mr Maumbi said, adding that “emergency power rationing remains a possibility, and Zesco is exploring all available options to stabilise the situation.” — Mwebantu
