Name and Location
Gilgel Gibe III dam, Ethiopia.

Client
Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo).

Project Description
The 243-m-high roller-compacted Gilgel Gibe III dam is under construction on the Omo river, about 380 km south of Addis Ababa. The dam will hold an estimated 117-trillion litres of water

It is the third in a series of cascading hydroelectric projects in the region, including the existing Gibe I and Gibe II dams, as well as the Gibe IV (1 472 MW) and Gibe V (560 MW) dams.

Once completed, the Gibe III dam will be the largest hydroelectric plant in Africa, with a power output of about 1 870 MW.

The dam will have ten installed turbines and be equipped with seven spillways, with water to the power house flowing from the dam through two tunnels, each 1.2 km long.

The power house will accommodate ten turbines.

The power generated by the power plant at Gibe III will be delivered to an interconnected system through a double- circuit 400 kV overhead transmission line that connects Gibe III to a new substation at Sodo.

This line will be 65 km long.

Value
The dam will cost about $1.7-billion to construct.

Duration
The project is expected to be in 2015.

The transmission line is expected to be completed in 2018.

Latest Developments
Gilgel Gibe is expected to come online this year, according to Water and Energy Minister Alemayehu Tegenu

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Salini Costruttori (dam construction).

On Budget and on Time?
The decision to build a roller-compacted dam instead of a rock-filled dam has delayed the project start-up.

Contact Details for Project Information
EEPCo, tel +251 11 1 55 95 67, fax +251 01 1 56 00 28 or email eepcocommunication@yahoo.com.
Salini Costruttori external relations, Angela Randolph, tel +39 06 6776412 or email a.randolph@salini.it