Ethiopia began diverting a stretch of the Nile on Tuesday to
make way for the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
"The dam is being built in the middle of the river so
you can't carry out construction work while the river flowed,” said Mihret
Debebe, chief executive officer of the state-run Ethiopian Electric Power
Corporation, at a ceremony at the site.
“This now enables us to carry out civil engineering work
without difficulties. The aim is to divert the river by a few meters and then
allow it to flow on its natural course.”
Water and Energy Minister Alemayehu Tegenu for his part said
the construction of the Dam is being carried out in such a way that it
maintains the mutual benefit of the Nile basin countries. He said it would also
enhance cooperation and economic integration and would not do any damage to the
lower riparian countries.
The Dam which will have an installed capacity of 6,000 MW at
its completion will have a storage capacity of 74 billion cubic meters of
water.
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