ZRA rehabilitates Kariba Dam
Source: ZRA rehabilitates Kariba Dam | Daily News 26/9/2018
HARARE – Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) has embarked on a mission to rehabilitate the Kariba Dam and to develop two Hydro-Electric Scheme sites to secure the long-term safety and reliability of the Kariba Complex by December 2022.
This came out in the board’s 129th meeting where discussions on availability of water for power generation at Kariba were made.
In a statement released yesterday, the river authority revealed its commitment towards the speedy implementation of the Kariba Dam Rehabilitation Project (KDRP) which entails the execution of the Plunge pool reshaping works and refurbishment of the six spillway gates of the Kariba Dam.
“The Authority’s mandate is to operate, monitor and manage the Kariba Dam, provide water for the generation of electricity, and to develop infrastructure on the stretch of the Zambezi River which constitutes a common border between Zambia and Zimbabwe,” read the statement.
The authority’s board said the aim is completing the rehabilitation of the Plunge pool in four years’ time although there are hurdles in the way of their progress.
“To this end, the board noted the progress of the works for the reshaping of the plunge pool by the contractor, Razel Bec which is already on site and making preparations for the installation of a cofferdam between the Plunge Pool area and the outlets to the power stations at Kariba.
“The board further noted that despite the challenges and complexities of the Plunge pool reshaping works, the project should be completed on schedule in 2022.”
The river authority said it is also working on increasing the utilisation of the Zambezi River through the development of two Hydro-electric schemes.
ZRA highlighted that one of the goals is to “increase the utilisation of the Zambezi River through the commencement of two Hydro-Electric Scheme sites upstream of the Kariba Dam by 2019, being the Batoka Gorge Hydro-Electric Scheme (BGHES) and the Devil’s Gorge Hydro-Electic Scheme.”