ETHIOPIA BUILDS THE BIGGEST HYDRO ELECTRIC DAM IN AFRICA CALLED THE GRAND RENAISSANCE DAM.

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) will be the biggest dam in Africa upon completion. Situated around 30 miles from the Sudan outskirt, GERD is anticipated to deliver 6,000 megawatts of power for both residential use and for exportation, evaluated creation of 15,000 GWh every year, To compare, Ethiopia at present has the ability to create just 3,200 megawatts.

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Ethiopia's per capita utilization of power is among the most lowest on the world, utilizing only 65 kilowatt hours while the world average is 3,104 kilowatts hours. Without access to power, numerous Ethiopians depend on alternative source of energy, for example, wood, waste, and different types of biomass. The World Bank gauges that Ethiopia could procure $1 billion a year from power exporting once the dam is completed, which would make it the biggest exporter of power in Africa.

The Ethiopian government has touted the Grand Renaissance Dam as an unfathomably important project for the nation, calling it a "deliberately critical activity" and has declined any worldwide cash for the dam as a state of national pride.

The assessed $5 billion project is being funded partly through bond offerings to Ethiopian nationals, yet principally through citizens tax payment and free will donations. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, will be Africa's greatest dam and will rely upon water from the 6,700-km Nile River, the world's longest waterway.

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The undertaking is found roughly 500 km north west of the capital Addis Ababa, in the area of Benishangul - Gumaz along the Blue Nile. Upon completion of the works, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam will be the biggest ever dam built in Africa: 1,800 m long, 155 m high and with an aggregate volume of 74,000 million m³.

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Dams, similar to all other advancement project confront multifaceted criticism. GERD is the same. Environmental gatherings have refered to that the dam will surge 1,680 square kilometers of timberland. A dependable natural effect appraisal has not been led, so the degree of ecological effect is obscure.

As indicated by the Ethiopian government, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is equivalent of at least six nuclear power plants

Diagram of Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam

"The dam is being is being built in the middle of the water so you can't do development work while the stream flows," Mihret Debebe, CEO of the state-run Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation, told the Reuters news agency.

"This now empowers us to complete structural building work without troubles. The point is to redirect the stream by a couple of meters and after that enable it to stream flow on its common course."

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"The dam's construction benefits riparian countries, showcases fair and equitable use of the river's flow and does not cause any harm on any country. Once this dam is completed, it will generate lots of income for the country through exportation of power and it will also create job opportunities to the citizens of Ethiopia.

REFERENCES

• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Ethiopian_Renaissance_Dam

• https://www.salini-impregilo.com/en/projects/in-progress/dams-hydroelectric-plants-hydraulic-works/grand-ethiopian-renaissance-dam-project.html

• https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2014/jul/14/ethiopia-grand-renaissance-dam-egypt

• https://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/06/africa/grand-reneissance-dam-ethiopia/index.html