CHAMWE KAIRA
Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL) is worried about the water levels in the dams in the central areas of the country in view of the anticipated drought this rainy season.
Managing director Waldemar von Lieres commented despite fears of a drought, the company still has the ability to pump water from its bole holes should it be required to do so.
Von Lieres said the company is a ‘bit concerned about the water levels in the dams in central areas being below 45%.’
“As a region (central areas), we are worried but we can pump up water supply from our bole holes,” he said in a response to a question by Observer Money.
Through innovation and dedication, NBL has reduced its water usage by 30% since 2024. In addition, 91% of energy is now sourced from renewable sources and 88% of production waste was diverted from landfills.
NBL has reduced its water consumption to 3.5 litres of water for every litre of beer produced in 2025, marking progress towards its target of reducing water usage to 2.4 litres per litre of beer by 2030.
According to NamWater’s weekly dam bulletin dated 28 September, water supply for the central area, which includes the capital city of Windhoek, recorded a net loss during the week to 28 September.
The sub-total for central dams dropped by 0.867 million cubic meters, bringing the region’s capacity down to 44%. Swakoppoort Dam dropped slightly to 67.2% capacity (42.6 million cubic meters).
Von Bach Dam decreased to 53.1% capacity (25.2 million cubic meters). Omatako Dam remains completely empty. To manage the declining reserves, NamWater confirmed that water transfers are actively being routed from the Swakoppoort Dam into the Von Bach Dam to maintain sufficient supply levels for central consumers.
Meanwhile, Windhoek’s local reservoirs, Friedenhau (44.6%) and Goreangab (100.3%), remained relatively stable, averaging 64.1% capacity for the Windhoek sub-total.
In sharp contrast to the central deficits, Namibia’s southern region experienced strong gains, heavily boosting the national average.
The southern dams received a combined net inflow of 3.093 million cubic meters during the week ending 28 September, pushing the regional sub-total to an impressive 87.9% of full capacity.
The massive Neckartal Dam, the country’s largest reservoir, remains at 100% capacity, holding 857.7 million cubic meters of water.
NamWater noted that Neckartal began spilling on 21 September, and its maximum levels have successfully held steady through the week.
Other southern dams also boast strong figures: NauteDam is currently overflowing at 103.1% capacity. Hardap Dam saw a significant weekly increase of 3.536 million cubic meters, rising to 56.8% capacity.
Oanob Dam sits comfortably at 52.7%. Dreihuk Dam (7.6%) and Bondels Dam (0.0%) remained low or empty.
The Gobabis sub-total sits at a low 15.9% capacity, with the region’s main reservoir, the Otjivero Main Dam, languishing at just 19.6%.
In the north, the Olushandja Dam provides a reliable safety net at 60.7% capacity. However, the Omaruru Delta and Omatjenne dams are both completely dry, reporting 0% capacity.
While the current national total of 79.4% is slightly down from the 83.1% recorded during the same period last season.
