Construction of Gilgel Gibe III, one of Ethiopia’s hydroelectric dams, has been concluded and it will officially be inaugurated next Saturday.
According to Chief Executive Officer of Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP), Engineer Azeb Asnake, the construction of the dam started 9 years ago and it is built at an outlay of 1.5 billion Euros.
The construction was financed by the Ethiopian Government and Export-Import Bank of China (China EXIM Bank). Loan from the bank covered 60 percent of the cost while the Ethiopian Government covered the rest.
The construction was undertaken by the Salini Construction Private Limited Company. The same Italian firm is also constructing the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
Gilgel Gibe III has a height of 243 meters and has a total storage capacity of 15 billion cubic meters. it also has a total installed capacity of 1,870 megawatts wit 10 Francis turbines each generating 187 megawatts.
Nevertheless, not all of the turbines are generating power as the dam has retained only some water. The turbines would commence generating power with full power through process, Azeb explained.
When the power plant goes operational, it boost Ethiopia’s installed generating capacity to 4,200 megawatts.
Currently the Gilgel Gibe III is generating 900 megawatts ahead of its inauguration, Azeb noted. This has enabled the nation to fill the gap created by the impact of El Nino, she furthered.
According to Engineer Mebratu Teshome, Project Site Coordinator of the dam, Ethiopians have acquired knowledge and experiences that would allow them to build similar projects in the future.
Source: Fana Broadcasting Corporate
No comments:
Post a Comment