Climate Change and Hydropower in the Southern African Power Pool and Zambezi River Basin: System-wide Impacts and Policy Implications

This research paper analyzes the impact of climate change on hydropower within the Zambezi River Basin and the Southern African Power Pool, focusing on electricity generation costs, greenhouse gas emissions, and the necessity for cooperative governance.

• Climate change impacts on the Zambezi River Basin result in asymmetrical outcomes for hydropower output: a drying climate could lead to a 10–20% decline in output from major plants, whereas a wetting climate would only cause a marginal increase.
• While long-term regional electricity generation cost increases are small (under 1%), hydro-dependent nations such as Zambia and Mozambique could face near-term cost increases of 20–30%.
• The displacement of hydropower by coal due to climate impacts could increase regional greenhouse gas emissions by an amount equivalent to a large coal-fired power station, affecting the Paris Agreement commitments of southern African countries under the UNFCCC.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2017). Climate Change and Hydropower in the Southern African Power Pool and Zambezi River Basin: System-wide Impacts and Policy Implications. https://www.sei.org/publications/climate-change-and-hydropower-in-the-southern-african-power-pool-and-zambezi-river-basin-system-wide-impacts-and-policy-implications/

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Climate Change and Hydropower in the Southern African Power Pool and Zambezi River Basin: System-wide Impacts and Policy Implications. 2017. https://www.sei.org/publications/climate-change-and-hydropower-in-the-southern-african-power-pool-and-zambezi-river-basin-system-wide-impacts-and-policy-implications/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Climate Change and Hydropower in the Southern African Power Pool and Zambezi River Basin: System-wide Impacts and Policy Implications |date=23 January 2017 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/climate-change-and-hydropower-in-the-southern-african-power-pool-and-zambezi-river-basin-system-wide-impacts-and-policy-implications/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2017climate, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Climate Change and Hydropower in the Southern African Power Pool and Zambezi River Basin: System-wide Impacts and Policy Implications}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2017}, month = jan, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/climate-change-and-hydropower-in-the-southern-african-power-pool-and-zambezi-river-basin-system-wide-impacts-and-policy-implications/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }