By: Nghiinomenwa-vali Hangala
Monthly, more than 70% of the country’s power generation comes from the Ruacana Hydroelectric Power Station, which is fed by the water flow from Angola.
A reduction in the water flow at the power station could flip the country’s generation capacity to a net importer.
Moreover, the reduction at Ruacana Hydro exposes the country to expensive electricity supply across the region, which is priced in US Dollars.
For the first two months, Namibia was a net importer of energy, with local generation observed at below 47% according to the various Electricity Sectoral Reports, which are compiled by the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA).
For the month of January 2026, the country only generated 46.7% (214,134 MWh) of its energy, and 77.2 percent was generated by Ruacana Hydro Power.
As a result, imports accounted for the remaining 53.3 percent (244,058 MWh).
In February 2026, local generation provided only 43.1 percent (194,10MWh) of the total electricity supplied to the domestic economy, with imports making up the remaining 56.9 percent (256,624 MWh).
The increased flow of water from Angola from the end of February through March 2026 has, however, changed the country’s generation capacity.
In March 2026, total local electricity generation was 283,738 MWh, one of the highest monthly productions, while imports contributed the remaining 44.6 percent (228,551 MWh).
This represents a shift from February 2026, when imports were the primary source of electricity supply, and is consistent with the pattern observed in March 2025, NSA noted.
The Ruacana Hydro Power Station was the largest contributor, generating 243,514 MWh (85.8 percent) of the total energy.
The Independent Power Producers (IPPs) followed with 35,596 MWh (12.5 percent).
The Omburu PV Solar Power Station contributed 4,579 MWh, accounting for 1.6 percent of total local generation.
The country’s domestic sales float around 310,000 and 350,000 MWh, while exports range between 20,000 MWh and 100,000 monthly.
In volume terms, electricity sales amounted to 461,152 MWh in March 2026, exceeding both the 441,850 MWh sold in February 2026 and the 426,518 MWh sold in March 2025.
Namibia’s energy cost for 2026 is estimated at N$5.3 billion, a slight increase from last year, N$5.2 billion.
As for national demand for 2026, it is estimated at 3.8 million MWh.
Ruacana Hydro Power is estimated to generate 1,435 GWh of total local generation.
The energy regulator is currently reviewing Nampower’s application of an 8.4% bulk tariff increase.
erastus@thevillager.com.na
