Indeed, the dam is so large that it could have easily replaced the other three dams. The Ethiopian government had originally proposed that the three countries jointly fund, operate, and own GERD. That regulating influence could be especially helpful as climate change makes East Africa’s rainfall more unpredictable. Excess electricity will be exported to other African countries and even to Europe and could eventually earn Ethiopia about $1 billion per year, which would make it the largest electricity exporter in Africa.Īmong the dam’s other expected benefits are a steadier flow of water through the dry season and less flooding in the rainy season. The GERD, as well as the 1,870-MW Gilgel Gibe III Dam completed in 2015, will nearly quadruple Ethiopia’s electricity capacity. According to energy experts, Ethiopia has the second highest hydropower potential in Africa, with an estimated capacity of about 45,000 MW. Given the country’s natural resources, there is no need for this impoverishment. Without electricity, the vast majority of Ethiopians rely on burning wood, dung, and other forms of biomass, and so deforestation and soil erosion has accelerated. The country’s installed capacity is a dismal 3,200 MW, and the annual per capita electricity consumption is among the lowest in the world-65 kilowatt-hours in 2013, far below even the average of 488 kWh for sub-Saharan African countries and the world average of 3,104 kWh.
Only about a quarter of its citizens have access to electricity. Meanwhile, its vast 74 billion-cubic-meter reservoir will start to fill, a process expected to take anywhere from five to 15 years.Įthiopia badly needs it. Sometime in 2017, the dam, which sits on the Blue Nile near the border of Ethiopia and Sudan, will begin producing electricity. Construction of the 6,000-megawatt, US $5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) began nearly six years ago and is now close to completion.
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