Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan to choose Renaissance dam consultancy firm

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi (L), Sudan's President Omar Al-Bashir (C) and Ethiopia's Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn (R) celebrating after announcing the declaration of principals over disputed Nile dam, March 2015 (Photo: The Egyptian Presidency)

Egypt’s Irrigation and Water Resources Minister Hossam Moghazi landed in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Wednesday for a fifth meeting over the contested Ethiopian dam.

Officials from Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan are expected to select an international firm that will carry out technical studies on the Grand Renaissance Dam and its effects on the Nile water share of downstream countries, Egypt’s state news agency MENA reported.

The studies, expected to take between five and 12 months, will be used in drafting a future possible deal between the three countries.

The dam has been a source of concern for Egypt, which already suffers from water shortages.

Ethiopia, however, insists that its project on a tributary of the Blue Nile will not have negative effects on downstream countries.

On 23 March, Egypt signed a declaration of principles with Ethiopia and Sudan in which they agreed on broad guidelines over the dam’s construction and reservoir filling.

Ethiopia's 6,000 megawatt dam, of which 40 percent is already complete, is set to be Africa's largest.

Source: http://english.ahram.org.eg/