South American dam faces critical energy crunch, as the river drains away.

The massive Itaipu hydroelectric power plant, located on the Parana River between Paraguay and Brazil, is facing an energy crisis due to lowest recorded river and precipitation levels, which experts predict will extend until next year.

The Itaipu dam, which provides approximately 10 percent of the total electricity consumed throughout Brazil and 86 percent of the energy consumed in landlocked Paraguay, has experienced its poorest performance since the time the hydroelectric project began running at full capacity in 2005.

In September, the Argentine-Paraguayan Yacyreta plant produced half the usual quantity of electricity, proving how extreme droughts are hindering the transition fossil fuels to renewable energy by drying up water sources and dams.

Itaipu’s Operations Superintendent Hugo Zarate predicted that this year Itaipu will produce between 65,000 and 67,000 gigatonnes of electricity (GWh).

Low production levels have a negative impact on power output as well as royalties charged by the countries for the water usage.