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Zambia · asset class

Power Plants in Zambia

Zambia has 39 power plants mapped on the OverWatts open energy atlas — the 67th-largest fleet of the 155 countries that hold any, and 0.1% of the world's mapped total. Of these, 8 operating and 31 under construction or proposed. Operating generation capacity totals 4.6 GW across 8 utility-scale plants of 100 MW and above. The largest is Batoka Gorge hydroelectric plant (2.4 GW).

The largest owner-operators are ZESCO Ltd (9), Chariot Transnational Power (2) and Maamba Energy Ltd (2) — ZESCO Ltd alone is named on 23% of them. Half of Zambia's power plants in service predate 2016 (median commissioning year of the 8 with a known date), 5 came online in the past decade and the oldest still listed is Victoria Falls hydroelectric plant, dating from 1936. 31 are in the pipeline, led by Batoka Gorge hydroelectric plant (2.4 GW), under construction. They account for 70% of every energy asset OverWatts maps in Zambia.

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39
Power Plant in Zambia
#67
of 155 countries
4.6 GW
Operating capacity
31
In construction / proposed

Operating generation capacity by fuel

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Largest power plants in Zambia

Who owns Zambia's power plants

Counts an asset once per company named as its owner or operator; a joint venture counts for each partner.

When they were built

Median commissioning year 2016 · oldest Victoria Falls hydroelectric plant (1936) · newest Chisamba solar farm (2025) · 8 of 39 carry a start date

Under construction & proposed

How Zambia compares · power plants by country

Frequently asked

How many power plants are there in Zambia?
OverWatts maps 39 power plants in Zambia — 0.1% of the world's mapped total, the 67th-largest national fleet of the 155 countries with any.
What is the largest power plant in Zambia?
Batoka Gorge hydroelectric plant, at 2.4 GW, operated by Zambezi River Authority.
How much power-generation capacity do Zambia's power plants have?
About 4.6 GW operating across 8 plants, with a further 12.5 GW under construction or proposed. That covers utility-scale sites of 100 MW and above, so it sits below national installed capacity wherever distributed generation is large.
Who owns the power plants in Zambia?
ZESCO Ltd is named as owner or operator on the most — 9 of 39 (23%). Next are Chariot Transnational Power (2), Maamba Energy Ltd (2) and Total Eren (2).
How old are Zambia's power plants?
The median commissioning year is 2016, across the 8 in service with a known start date. The oldest still listed is Victoria Falls hydroelectric plant (1936); 5 came online in the past ten years.
What new power plants are being built in Zambia?
31 projects are under construction or proposed. The largest are Batoka Gorge hydroelectric plant (2.4 GW), Masdar Zesco solar farm (2.0 GW) and Green Giant Zambia solar farm (1.0 GW).

Other asset classes in Zambia

Cement Plant 9Coal / Uranium Mine 3Interconnector 2Iron Ore Mine 2Chemical Plant 1

Power Plants in other countries

China 11,537United States 3,831India 1,675Brazil 879Spain 653Australia 615Philippines 489Russia 461Canada 452Vietnam 392Japan 387Germany 335

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