The Operation Department of Ethiopian Electric Power said this week that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam GERD has significantly surpassed its electricity production target of the first ten months. GERD generated 26% more power than planned during the initial ten months of the 2016 fiscal year.
The Ethiopian Renaissance Dam’s planning office manager, Tiruwork Shiferau, revealed that the dam’s initial goal for the fiscal year was to produce 2,152.8 gigawatt-hours of electricity. However, it exceeded this target by generating 2,711 gigawatt-hours, a significant 26% increase. At this moment, GERD is operating with two turbines. These turbines are working at their full capacity, and each turbine has a capacity of 375 megawatts.
Once all 13 turbines are fully operational, the dam’s total power generation capacity is expected to increase by a substantial 83%, significantly boosting Ethiopia’s electricity generation capabilities.
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has played a substantial role in Ethiopia’s power generation, contributing 16% of the total 16,900 gigawatt hours of electricity produced over the past ten months.
Once the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam project is fully operational, it will have the capability to generate up to 5,150 megawatts of electricity. This immense power generation capacity is expected to result in an annual production of 15,760 gigawatt hours of electricity, significantly boosting Ethiopia’s overall energy output.
Earlier this week, the project manager of the Great Renaissance Dam, Engineer Khifle Huro, stated that 96% of the total work on the dam had been completed. The remaining work is scheduled to be finished by the end of next year (2017).
The Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) has significant economic benefits for Ethiopia. The dam is expected to double the country’s electricity generation capacity, providing a reliable source of power for its growing economy. This increased power generation will contribute to Ethiopia’s economic growth and create jobs, particularly in the regions surrounding the dam.
Moreover, the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia urged the Ethiopian diaspora to donate for GERD. Reportedly, the amount of money collected from the Ethiopian diaspora for the Great Renaissance Dam project is only 1.4 billion birr. This figure represents merely 0.5% of the total project cost. Read More…
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The population of Ethiopia are still waiting to see the benefits of the dam…i live the center of Ethiopia. And get multiple power cuts everyday….but government generated enough to sell to surrounding countries…when its the Ethiopian People that has contributed to the building the most…