Major hydro-electric dams in Ethiopia to be constructed

Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) is set to build two hydro-electric dams in Ethiopia on the Genale-Dawa and Dabus rivers at a cost of US$50.2m.

On completion the two hydro-electric dams in Ethiopia will generate a total capacity of 672MW of power. The generated power will be contributed to the existing national grid which is at 5,000MW of power.

Genale-Dawa River is not the first dam project estimated to cost US$20.6m. However, the project fund has been secured from the Chinese Exim bank. Additionally, the Genale Dawa III dam project is 80% complete.

Nonetheless, the new Genale Dawa dam VI is expected to generate 248MW of power. On the other hand the remaining 424MW will be generated from the Dabus River, a north-flowing tributary of the Abay River in the southwestern region of Ethiopia.

According to EEP Communications Director, Miskir Negash, beginning this year, the projects are expected to be completed within a period of 4 years, adding that evaluation of pre-qualified construction companies and selection of contractors is near conclusion.

The perennial 858km Genale-Dawa River connects Ethiopia and Somalia with approximately half of its total length running through the mountainous typology in Bale. Genale Dawa River has the third largest catchment area, 74kmsq, with an annual discharge of 6,000,000,000m3.

The river has an estimated hydro-power generation capacity of 9,300GWh per annum. But, the river is expected to contribute about 5.8% of the country’s total estimated potential.