Several towns in northern Botswana have been left without electricity following a supply disruption from Zambia’s power utility, ZESCO. The affected areas include Plateau, Kasane, Kazungula, and Lesoma, which rely heavily on cross-border electricity from Zambia.
According to reports, the outage was caused by a breakdown in ZESCO’s cross-border supply link. The interruption has raised concerns in Botswana, where Zambia remains a key energy partner.
Data shows that ZESCO supplies about 48.8% of Botswana’s electricity imports, making it the country’s largest single exporter of power. The loss of such a large share of imports immediately placed pressure on Botswana Power Corporation (BPC), which now has to seek alternative sources to stabilise the grid.
Residents in the affected towns have expressed frustration, as the blackout has disrupted businesses, schools, and essential services. Local media also report that the tourism sector in Kasane and Kazungula, which host several lodges and safari operators near the Chobe National Park, is among the hardest hit by the outage.
The Botswana Power Corporation has not provided an official timeline for when power will be fully restored but confirmed that discussions with ZESCO are ongoing to resolve the issue.
Energy analysts say the incident highlights Botswana’s dependence on imported electricity. Although the country generates some of its own power through coal-fired plants, domestic production is not enough to meet growing demand. As a result, Botswana relies on imports from neighbouring countries such as Zambia, South Africa, and Namibia.
The blackout has renewed calls for Botswana to invest more in domestic energy production, particularly in renewable energy sources like solar and wind, to reduce dependency on imports and strengthen energy security.
As of now, authorities in both countries are working on restoring the cross-border supply, while residents in Plateau, Kasane, Kazungula, and Lesoma wait for normal electricity service to return.
