HARARE, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) has allocated 27 billion cubic meters of water for the year 2025 to Zimbabwe and Zambia for hydropower generation at their two power stations on Lake Kariba amid hopes that the region will receive good rains during the 2024/2025 season.
A statement issued Friday by the bi-national body, which administers the waters of the Zambezi River as it forms the border between the two countries, said the allocation would be shared equally between Zimbabwe's Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) and Zambia's ZESCO Limited.
Lake Kariba hosts the Kariba Dam, where the ZPC generates power on the south bank while ZESCO Limited operates on the north bank.
Munyaradzi Munodawafa, chief executive of the ZRA, said the increased allocation, up from 16 billion cubic meters in 2024, was caused by favorable projections by climate experts showing that the region would receive normal to above-normal rains during the forthcoming season.
He said the review would take into account the actual rainfall performance for the rainfall season, the river inflows, and the resulting water levels at Kariba Dam.
Zimbabwe's rainfall season generally runs from October to March.
There has been curtailed power generation at Kariba Dam as the water level in the lake became very low because of the El Nino-induced drought, which ravaged the southern African region during the 2023/2024 rainy season, thus prompting the ZRA to limit water allocation to the two power utilities. As a result, Zimbabwe and Zambia have been switching off some of their consumers during peak hours. ■