Zimbabwe and Zambia experienced a complete power outage on Sunday evening, Peter Mumba from the Zambian Ministry of Energy said at a press conference on Monday.
Due to the lack of electricity, hospital operations were suspended, although, as the Zambian authorities assured, no patients died because of it. Miners mining copper in a mine owned by a Chinese company in Kalulushi in the central part of the country experienced unpleasant moments when they got stuck in the shaft for several hours. – We managed to save them after providing alternative energy – assured Peter Mumba.
Power was partially restored on Monday morning, and power suppliers in both neighboring countries – ZESA in Zimbabwe and ZESCO in Zambia – are currently looking for the cause of the blackout.
Energy production shortages
Zimbabwe and Zambia have been experiencing severe power generation shortfalls throughout the past year due to the lowest-ever water levels in the huge artificial Lake Kariba, which hosts a hydropower plant jointly managed by the two countries.
Zimbabweans are struggling with power outages that last up to 18 and 20 hours a day. The attempt to compensate for poor hydropower production with coal-fired power plants has failed because they are old and constantly breaking down.
In Zambia too, electricity is rationed and you can often only use it for an hour or two a day, and in many villages there is no electricity at all.
Zambia usually needs to supply 2,400 MW of electricity to households and businesses during peak hours, but the drought has meant it now supplies just 1,000 MW. To alleviate the situation, the Zambian authorities spend $48 million each month on energy imports from South Africa and Mozambique. According to Zambian economists, the country has already lost $1.3 billion due to the energy crisis, which corresponds to 5 percent of GDP.
This is how a family in Lusaka province in Zambia copes with the lack of electricityPhoto from November 24, 2024GettyImages
Zimbabwe also wanted to import electricity from South Africa and Mozambique, but the country is struggling with a currency crisis and has no means to pay for electricity.
Both countries have excellent conditions for using solar energy, but in the case of Zambia it accounts for only 0.7 percent of national energy production and in Zimbabwe it is just less than 4 percent.
Main photo source: GettyImages