The Batoka Gorge Dam Controversy
The proposed Batoka Gorge Hydroelectric Power Station is a $5 billion, 2400 MW hydroelectric power station, which will be built on the Zambezi River to help satisfy Zambia’s and Zimbabwe’s rising energy demand, with financial backing by the African...
Black-and-white sketch treatment based on supplied Batoka Gorge dam reference art.
The proposed Batoka Gorge Hydroelectric Power Station is a $5 billion, 2400 MW hydroelectric power station, which will be built on the Zambezi River to help satisfy Zambia’s and Zimbabwe’s rising energy demand, with financial backing by the African Development Bank.
The project will be located on the Zambezi River, 47km downstream of the World Heritage Site Victoria Falls.
The current project, implemented by the Zambezi River Authority (ZRA), is for two power plants, one in Zambia and one in Zimbabwe, each with an installed capacity of 1200 MW.
In June 2019, the construction contract was awarded to a consortium of US-based General Electric and the Chinese PowerChina. Work on the project was scheduled to begin in 2020 but encountered several obstacles, including disruptions brought by the COVID-19 pandemic and difficulties in securing funding. The contract was canceled four years later, citing financial and procurement reasons.
In September 2023, UN agency UNESCO granted permission to build the dam. This came after UNESCO had received complaints by environmentalists that the Batoka project would affect the Victoria Falls and had sent inspectors. “They looked at the reports and our presentations and agreed that Batoka could go ahead” (Munyaradzi Munodawafa, CEO of ZRA). However, in October 2023, UNESCO refute claims that it had approved the $5 billion hydro power project.
As of April 2024, ZRA is set to resume tendering for prospective developers of the project, starting next year, though it is still unclear whether or how the project will address the financial concerns raised earlier.
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