Lake Kariba Sees Water Level Improvement, But Long Road Ahead
The Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) reported on Monday, January 6, 2025, that the water level in Lake Kariba is steadily rising due to consistent rainfall over the reservoir and its immediate catchment area.
In their latest update, ZRA said the usable live storage for power generation is currently at 2.61%.
While this is an improvement, it is still significantly lower compared to the 12.32% recorded on the same date in 2024. The ZRA said:
The Kariba Lake is designed to operate between levels 475.50m and 488.50m (with 0.70m freeboard) for hydropower generation.
The Lake level is steadily increasing due to sustained rainfall on the reservoir and immediate catchment, closing the period under review at 475.87m (2.61% usable storage) on 6th January 2025, compared to 477.28m (12.32% usable storage) recorded on the same date last year.
The lake level at Lake Kariba fell to its lowest in the past twelve months on December 31 and January 1, reaching 1.93%.
However, from January 2 to January 6, it has been steadily rising from 2% to 2.61%. This increase offers hope to both Zimbabwe and Zambia that load shedding may be eased in the coming months as the lake level continues to rise.
More: Pindula News
