Zim, Zambia to look beyond Zambezi in power generation strategy

Zambia and Zimbabwe have jointly agreed to initiate a departure from their traditional energy policy, committing to look beyond Kariba and the Zambezi River for power generation as climate change-induced droughts threaten regional power security.

 

This resolution emerged from a high-level meeting held in Harare recently between Zimbabwe’s Minister of Energy and Power Development, July Moyo and Zambia’s Minister of Energy, Makozo Chikote.

 

The ministers met to discuss collaborative modalities for managing the dwindling water resources in Kariba and to find lasting solutions to persistent power supply challenges.

 

Both nations are grappling with power deficits due to critically low water levels in the Kariba reservoir, with Zambia, in particular, being the hardest hit, as over 85 percent of its power supply is derived from hydropower, making it exceptionally vulnerable to drought.

 

Minister Chikote, who candidly mentioned he had earned the moniker “Minister of loadshedding” in Zambia, described energy as the backbone of any economy.

 

“We have to look beyond Kariba. The two countries have to look beyond the Zambezi River. That is their responsibility. This is where our forefathers started. We must also keep on adding to what our forefathers put in place.

 

“I always state to my big brother that, Honourable Minister (July Moyo) in the region, we need to be the role model of encouraging other countries to come on board.”

 

He also linked energy security directly to economic growth across key sectors, including mining and agriculture.

 

“If we want to increase production in mining, we need to look at how we are going to manage our energy sector. What new ideas are we bringing on board to ensure we meet the targets we have set for ourselves?”

 

Minister Moyo weighed in, hailing the meeting as a vital step and echoing the sentiment that common challenges must be viewed as opportunities for innovation.

 

“Those challenges also bring opportunities to think of alternatives in the energy sector, which drives our economies. You and I have a big task,” he said.

 

“Our economies are growing. In the mining sector, our economies are growing. In the agriculture sector, our agriculture, especially climate-proofing agriculture in the case of Zimbabwe, is growing.

 

“That’s why our irrigation system has grown in leaps and bounds, and we can boast that Zimbabwe has surplus wheat. We had surplus wheat the last two years, and this year we even have a larger crop of surplus wheat, but that needs irrigation, that irrigation needs power.”

 

Beyond power generation, the two ministers committed to deepening cooperation in the fossil fuels and gas sector.

 

The Herald