Water levels in Lake Kariba have continued to rise gradually, offering cautious optimism for hydropower generation.
According to the latest update from the Zambezi River Authority (ZRA), the lake’s level as of June 2 stands at 478.39 meters above sea level, compared to 477.35 meters recorded on the same date in 2024.
This slight increase is attributed to steadily rising inflows from the upper catchment area of the Zambezi River.
While the gains are marginal, they represent an encouraging trend following a period of low water levels that had threatened energy generation and water availability.
Currently, the usable live storage volume, the portion of water available for electricity generation, is at 13.06 billion cubic meters (BCM), a notable improvement from 8.30 BCM recorded last year. This translates to 20.16% of the live storage capacity available for power generation, up from 12.82% in 2024.
Lake Kariba is designed to operate within a range of 475.50 meters (minimum operating level) and 488.50 meters (full supply level), with 0.70 meters set aside as a freeboard to prevent overflow.
At full capacity, the lake holds up to 181 BCM of water, with 65 BCM designated as live storage, the volume of water between the minimum and full supply levels used for power generation.
As of now, the lake’s level is 2.89 meters above the minimum operating threshold. This means it holds just under 3 meters of usable live storage out of a potential 13 meters, reinforcing the fact that while conditions have improved, the reservoir remains significantly below full capacity.
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