An aerial view of the Kariba Dam.
The Kariba South Expansion Project involves the expansion of the South Power Station in Zimbabwe, located on the southern bank of Kariba Gorge, which lies at the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia.
Built with the support from the Chinese government, it is the first large-scale hydroelectric project undertaken by a Chinese company in Zimbabwe.
This significant infrastructure project was initiated at the request of the Zimbabwean government to improve the country's power supply. After the expansion of the power station, it is expected to add 30 percent more electricity capacity to Zimbabwe.
The project commenced on Nov 10, 2014, and was completed on March 10, 2018, with the power units being connected to the grid and put into commercial operation two weeks ahead of schedule.
It has an installed capacity of 2×150 megawatts, generating 11.83 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year on average. So far, its cumulative power generation has led to approximately $490 million in economic benefits.
