Sustainable energy mix is essential for Zambian development

Lusaka city

As Zambia grows and government sets more ambitious goals towards economic and industrial development, the country needs to find sustainable, affordable and innovative ways  to meet its growing energy demand.

The growing mining sector and robust industrialization, consumes the bulk of the country’s  generated electricity, and is currently putting the existing energy infrastructure under strain, causing frequent rolling blackouts.

The hugely impressive increase of average incomes from $340 to $1840 over the last decade has also boosted the consumptive economy and put even more pressure on the already constrained energy sector.

Against this backdrop it is vital for the country to explore alternative energy sources to adequately supplement the existing installed capacity.

The country is currently experiencing severe  power crisis as it grapples with a 560 megawatt (MW) power deficit. Additionally, the demand for electricity is growing at 200MW annually.

One of the major risk factors that the country faces today is its overdependence on hydropower, which makes up 95% of the country’s current generation. In historically water abundant Zambia the recent droughts triggered a more that 30% power deficit in demanded electricity.

Many households as well as large and small businesses which relied solely on the grid for energy were forced to revert to charcoal to meet general heating needs. The reliance on environmentally unfriendly charcoal is fraught with massive deforestation and other detrimental consequences.

Zambia is the largest consumer of charcoal in the region and although estimates vary greatly on charcoal production’s contribution to deforestation, recent studies report an average annual loss of over 300,000 hectares of woodland.

Reduced water levels at the country’s main hydro sources – Kariba North Bank, Kafue Gorge and Victoria Falls power stations – are not subject to quick solutions as they are directly dependent on nature.

A solution to the energy crisis in Zambia requires strategic long-term planning to deal with the negative effects and counter-balance the fundamental vulnerabilities of the country’s power sector.

To make Zambia totally energy independent and avoid the current situation in the future, the government has decided to add nuclear energy capacity to the country’s energy mix as a viable, affordable and green option of baseload energy generation.

This decision has been well researched and is completely justified. Nuclear power is a cost-effective and reliable base load power source. A modern nuclear power plant (NPP) is able to supply uninterrupted power for 60-80 years at a predictable and stable price, a price which is not drastically effected by the volatility of the global commodity market.

Nuclear fuel makes up a very small percentage of the overall cost of producing electricity, therefore even if the price of uranium doubles, the final cost of electricity generated by nuclear will only increase by roughly 5%, which cannot be said for conventional energy sources, such as coal and gas.

Zambia has already made significant steps toward the realisation of its ambitious nuclear programme. Russia and Zambia recently signed a number of agreements regarding the peaceful development of nuclear energy. Nuclear technologies will not only provide Zambia with sustainable baseload power, but will also transform the country into a hub of nuclear science and innovation, as well as create jobs and all necessary conditions to become one of the regional leaders in cancer treatment.