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Batoka gorge

PLANS for the long proposed Batoka Gorge Hydro-electric Power Plant have been expanded to 2,400MW from the initial 1,600MW, an industry official has said.

The project is located on the Zambezi River about 54km downstream of Victoria Falls and upstream of the existing Kariba Dam Hydro-electric Power Plant across the boundary between Zambia and Zimbabwe.

A recent study has shown that the Batoka Gorge Power Plant would produce more electricity than previously envisaged, according to Munyaradzi Munodawafa, the head of the company in charge of the project, the Zambezi River Authority.

“We’re looking, at most, that it’s going to produce 2,400MW. This is an improvement from previous studies which were talking about 1,600MW,” Munodawafa told Reuters.

The completion of the project, which will involve the construction of a dam and a hydro power plant on the Zambezi River, is expected to ease an electricity shortage in the two countries and southern Africa at large.

Munodawafa said a feasibility study was almost complete and a report would be ready by May after which an environmental impact assessment study would be done by June.

“After we’ve done that we’ll start looking for developers,” Munodawafa said.

It is expected that the plant will be built and operated by a private company for a period of years before ownership is transferred to the two states, he said.

The cost, previously estimated at $2.5 billion, would be known in May after the feasibility study, Munodawafa said.

According to the Zimbabwe Power Company (ZPC) the estimated construction period for the mega project is six years with Zimbabwe and Zambia expected to share the costs.

The objective of the project is to increase power generation capacity between Zambia and Zimbabwe, reduce power outages and reliance on coal fired power stations. This will spur additional investment and result in increased industrial development and performance.

Increased power supply will also create opportunities for improved water and sanitation service delivery as most urban wastewater systems are energy dependent.

Once completed the Batoka Hydro scheme will leave Zambia and Zimbabwe as net exporters of power in the region after meeting local needs.

The project will also improve the generation mix in Zimbabwe, which is currently skewed in favour of fossil fuel (coal) fired plants, which are expensive and associated with greenhouse gases. — Reuters/Business Reporter