Optimizing Power Generation

By Derrick Silimina

Innocent Gondwe tries to put up a smile as he uses his welding machine anxiously to finish his work in time in order to get paid, before a scheduled power cut.  

But he is unable to fully hide the pain in his eyes caused by the frequent power cuts that are affecting his business, which solely depends on electricity supply from ZESCO, Zambia’s major power utility company. 

After dropping out of school, Gondwe went all out to establish himself as an artisan to earn a living in Kalingalinga, one of the slums in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital. 

“My work demands a stable power supply, but electricity is available just for two hours from 5 a.m. I depend on this work to support my family,” 30-year-old Gondwe told ChinAfrica. 

Frequent power cuts also forced 40-year-old barber Charles Mulenga to shut down his barbershop, which he relied on to make a living and send his children to school. He needed electricity to operate the equipment, but he could get it just for a few hours a day. 

“I had no choice but to close my barbershop after ZESCO, the state-owned power company that supplies almost all of the country’s electricity, recently rolled out a load-shedding schedule which lasts from six to 12 hours at a stretch,” Mulenga noted.  

Similarly, Lucy Mambwe, 32, operator of a hair salon in downtown Lusaka, said, “My business is down due to the unpredictable power supply.”  

Zambia has traditionally depended on the water flows of the mighty Zambezi and Kafue rivers for its hydropower - a clean and renewable resource that now seems unsustainable. 

Chronic drought caused by climate change has lowered water levels to the point where power production is severely curtailed. The water level at the Kariba Dam has been decreasing steadily because of droughts and low inflows from the Zambezi River and its tributaries.  

Electricity output  

Droughts in recent years have cut electricity output by nearly one-third of Zambia’s total installed hydroelectric capacity of 2,380 mw.  

In 2019, water levels in the Kariba Dam plunged to their lowest level since 1996, falling to 10 percent of the normal level. Late last year, the level of usable water in Kariba, tapped by both Zambia and Zimbabwe, stood at 2.68 percent of the normal, according to the Zambezi River Authority, which manages water supply for the two countries and is responsible for the allocation of water used by Zimbabwe’s Kariba South and Zambia’s Kariba North power stations. 

Against this backdrop, Copperbelt Energy Corp. (CEC) recently signed an engineering, procurement and construction contract with Sino hydro Zambia Ltd. for a 34-mw solar power project in Kitwe’s Riverside area. The project will increase the plant’s generating capacity from the existing 1 mw to 34 mw with an annual output of 56.5 gwh. 

The government says the investment is a big step in achieving the country’s goal of ending power cuts, also known as load-shedding, and doubling its electricity generating capacity in order to support the needs of businesses and industries. 

Speaking during the commissioning of the solar power plant, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema said CEC’s Riverside Solar Plant in Kitwe Town in Copperbelt Province involves the installation of more than 61,320 solar panels and the construction of two transmission lines with the investment of a total of $22 million.  

Sino hydro representative Si Yang said the project is important for optimizing power generation. “We are collaborating on production of solar energy, which is important for the optimization of power generation, the stability of the national power grid, as well as the mitigation of the impact of climate change,” Yang said. 

When the water levels in hydroelectric dams get too low, the electricity provider cuts supply to users – sometimes for 20 hours per day. This has hit the economy hard across all sectors, including metal fabricators, hair salons, and butcher’s shops. Thomas Sipalo, owner of a butcher’s shop in Lusaka’s sprawling Soweto market, sees the impact immediately in his refrigerators. “My beef products go bad every time the power supply is shut down,” he said.  

Diverse energy mix 

Energy experts say droughts caused by climate change are not the only factor behind Zambia’s energy woes; chronic under-investment in hydro projects has also caused problems. So even when there is sufficient rain, the power supply cannot keep up with the demand from mining, manufacturing and agriculture. 

According to the US Agency for International Development, Zambia gets 85 percent of its power from hydro projects. The biggest problem is that the Southern African country is over-dependent on hydro energy, a fuel source that is subject to the vagaries of the weather.  

“The government should invest in other renewable energy sources instead of always depending on the Kariba Dam for power generation,” Mambwe, the hair-salon operator, said 

In this context, the Zambian government has launched a policy aimed at diversifying its energy mix through the implementation of clean energy projects such as solar and wind power.  

For instance, ZESCO Ltd. recently signed contracts worth $548 million with Power Construction Corp. of China to develop three solar photovoltaic power plants, with a combined capacity of 600 mw, in Chibombo District of Central Province and Chirundu and Siavonga districts of Southern Province of the country.  

Other efforts include a recently signed memorandum of understanding and a landmark Joint Development Agreement between Zambia and the United Arab Emirates, aimed at facilitating massive investment in renewable energy in Zambia. 

“With this projected increase in electricity supply, Zambia can achieve faster economic development and create more jobs for our citizens. More players are expressing interest in our plan to diversify the nation’s energy mix, which shall include solar, wind and hydro power,” Hichilema said. 

Reporting from Zambia