Thursday, March 28, 2024

Zambia’s Energy Crisis: Economist Calls for Exploration of Nuclear Power to Address Shortages

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Zambia is facing an unprecedented energy crisis, with power cuts lasting up to 12 hours a day and a rapidly growing population putting increased strain on the country’s infrastructure. In the face of this crisis, economist Dr. Lubinda Haabazoka is calling for the exploration of nuclear power as a solution.

“Load shedding has its own huge negative effects on both households and businesses,” said Dr. Haabazoka. “Not only does it increase the cost of doing business and living, it also limits people’s ability to not only do business but also construct their livelihoods.”

Dr. Haabazoka pointed out that while Zambia’s electricity generation capacity has increased from 1,800 megawatts in 2010 to 3,200 megawatts in 2021, actual generation is dependent on the amount of water in the country’s rivers. Poor rainfall patterns in recent years have had a negative impact on economic growth, with power cuts forcing companies to reduce production and the country spending more on power imports.

“If our population was 12 million in 2012, our population has almost doubled to close to 20 million people in 2021! This huge growth in population means we need more infrastructure to support the population and power is one of them,” said Dr. Haabazoka.

“The 1,800 megawatts power generation capacity was left by Kenneth Kaunda who last built power generating capacity in 1977. That capacity was to support a population of 3 million people.”

Given the limitations of hydroelectric power, Dr. Haabazoka is calling on the government and the people of Zambia to consider alternative energy sources. “We can’t just wait for God to give us water to generate electricity,” he said.

“We need to use the intelligence God granted us to diversify our energy sources. Europe once started preaching green energy and they are now paying for that this winter! That rhetoric should not consume Zambia.”

Dr. Haabazoka argued that the use of peaceful nuclear power could help to create a stable base load and sustain the country’s growing population.

“We need to proceed on the path of seeking peaceful nuclear power in order to sustain our growing population and region at large,” he said. “Ask any sober engineer and they will tell you that the maximum we can harness in terms of hydroelectric power is not more than 5,000 megawatts. Our rivers are drying. We are cutting down trees at an alarming rate! We are careless hence no rainfall.”

The economist also called on the government to utilize the expertise of those who have worked on the nuclear energy project in the past.

“There is a program that the government started on nuclear energy,” he said.

“How far is this project? People with institutional memory on this project have since been scattered around. I was one of the people that worked on the Turnkey of the research reactor! No one has ever come to ask me about the project in 3 years! That’s how this country gets it wrong! The late Msiska had done quite a lot for us to diversify into nuclear! People he worked with are still there! Let’s just do the right thing. We shall end up a disaster in the future when it’s too late.”

18 COMMENTS

  1. He is a naive or backwards economist…………

    Ati Europe is regretting relying on green energy………that could be so, but what the man doesn’t seem to know is most of Europe has very poor sunshine.

    California at times of the day runs on 100% solar energy………a population of 39,000,000

    Zambia has almost 365 days of solar energy………….

    The PF spent billions on the wrong energy, hydro , which as we are seeing is prone to climatic conditions.

    More money should have been spent on solar projects.

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    • Hydro is not the wrong energy. Zambia is gifted with so many rivers it could have three dams on the Zambezi, two on Kafue, one on Luapula Andwith modern day technology double the turbines on a single dam. Thats why we have human resources. Engineers should be working at exploiting what we have to the full

  2. When we as pf under the guidance of wise counsel ecl decided to start looking into nuclear energy, the upnd dogs criticised us. Now their president promised to end load shedding but here we are. Even the hard-core upnd terrorists like spaka have gone into hiding hahaha

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    • Naimwe…………

      Go back to bed…………

      You can’t even collect rubbish from streets………ati we looked at nuclear energy………….

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  3. “The economist also called on the government to utilize the expertise of those who have worked on the nuclear energy project in the past.”
    This moron does not know what he is talking about ..which nuclear experts you mean the Russians and Lungu’s appointees. Lazy Lungu was not even serious because he did not have the funds for such projects he just wanted Russia to use Zambia as a dumping ground.

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  4. Where is the Russian project signed by Nkandu Luo? I am made to believe that land was allocated in Chongwe for a nuclear plant? I remember a long debate on the same issue or that is what Zambians are good at! Debating debating debating!!

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  5. I think in Zambia some of our leaders suffer from mad human disease. They should stop blaming the cows and look at themselves first. Naimwe ba LT, you should be responsible when reporting by following up your news articles. What happened to investigative journalism? You have all the details relating to the nuclear power station noises so please hammer this economist with data before publishing these half baked stories.

  6. He is alluding to Nuclear because he knows Russians will be mentioned when Russians are mentioned he will say appoint me and my wife we will translate for you via my consultancy. This is how this goon makes money always bootlicking the govt of the day. Zambia has not got one solar farm and he is proposing nuclear.

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  7. If there is enough uranium deposits in Zambia,this conversation must not die just because a moron has brought it out

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  8. We do not have the right worker mentality to ensure safety in nuclear power. We can see this from the numerous mine accidents taking place every year. A single Fukushima or Chernobyl in Zambia could kill millions and leave millions others with high risk of cancers in a country where cancer care is non-existent at worst or erratic at best. Lake Kariba is dry not because of climate change. On that one I totally disagree with the President. It is dry because of poor forestry and recharging zones management over the last 50 years of Zambia’s existence. We receive almost the same amount of rain every year barring one or two seasons here and there. The rain water just evaporates.

  9. Let me post again.
    We do not have the right worker mentality to ensure safety in nuclear power. We can see this from the numerous mine accidents taking place every year. A single Fukushima or Chernobyl in Zambia could kill millions and leave millions others with high risk of cancers in a country where cancer care is non-existent at worst or erratic at best. Lake Kariba is dry not because of climate change. On that one I totally disagree with the President. It is dry because of poor forestry and recharging zones management over the last 50 years of Zambia’s existence. We receive almost the same amount of rain every year barring one or two seasons here and there. The rain water just evaporates.

  10. Third time. We do not have the right worker mentality to ensure safety in nuclear power. We can see this from the numerous mine accidents taking place every year. A single Fukushima or Chernobyl in Zambia could kill millions and leave millions others with high risk of cancers in a country where cancer care is non-existent at worst or erratic at best. Lake Kariba is dry not because of climate change. On that one I totally disagree with the President. It is dry because of poor forestry and recharging zones management over the last 50 years of Zambia’s existence. We receive almost the same amount of rain every year barring one or two seasons here and there. The rain water just evaporates.

  11. 4th time. We do not have the right worker mentality to ensure safety in nuclear power. We can see this from the numerous mine accidents taking place every year. A single Fukushima or Chernobyl in Zambia could kill millions and leave millions others with high risk of cancers in a country where cancer care is non-existent at worst or erratic at best. Lake Kariba is dry not because of climate change. On that one I totally disagree with the President. It is dry because of poor forestry and recharging zones management over the last 50 years of Zambia’s existence. We receive almost the same amount of rain every year barring one or two seasons here and there. The rain water just evaporates.

  12. 5th time. We do not have the right worker mentality to ensure safety in nuclear power. We can see this from the numerous mine accidents taking place every year. A single Fukushima or Chernobyl in Zambia could kill millions and leave millions others with high risk of cancers in a country where cancer care is non-existent at worst or erratic at best. Lake Kariba is dry not because of climate change. On that one I totally disagree with the President. It is dry because of poor forestry and recharging zones management over the last 50 years of Zambia’s existence. We receive almost the same amount of rain every year barring one or two seasons here and there. The rain water just evaporates.

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