Muchinga Hydro Power

The proposed project will provide approximately 225MW of new hydro capacity for the Southern Africa Power Pool. The project is located in the Central Province of Zambia in the Lunsemfwa Gorge, some 70 km east of Kabwe. The Muchinga project will exploit the hydropower potential of the combined flows of the Lunsemfwa and Mkushi rivers and will include the use of an exisiting dam on the Lunsemfwa river at Mita Hills and the construction of a new narrow dam in the Mkushi gorge and a new power plant some 25km downstream. The preliminary assessment of the project sponsors is that the project will not require the relocation of any people, given the remote nature of the project site. The project expects to sell the energy produced to consumers in Namibia, Botwana and Zambia.

InfraCo Africa had started the project preparation in November 2010. Additional thorough technical, hydrological, environmental and social impact assessment is however required, and the ITF Grant approved in July 2011 will be used primarily for all the necessary geotechnical, hydrological and technical work, marketing studies and contractual and procurement work for the project.