Major Dam Construction Begins in Uganda
Tuesday 22nd August 2007 saw construction begin on a new hydropower dam in Uganda. Situated on the banks of the Nile, the 250-megawatt monolith-in-waiting carries with it the hopes of decision-makers and public alike, who envisage it turning around the current power crisis in the African nation.
The dam itself, entitled ‘Bujugali’, is being built at a cost of $799 million. However, according to Yoweri Museveni, the Ugandan President, the dam makes economic sense, given the present subsidies plaguing the energy industry. "To avert the power shortages, emergency thermal plants have been installed, (but) you cannot imagine the loss caused by huge subsidies to bring down power tariffs", he stated, while speaking at the Bujugali Dam’s official launch. He continued: "We must anticipate demand and produce electricity to always be ahead of demand."
The audience at the ceremony marking the beginning of the dam’s construction included the presence of the Aga Khan, spearhead of the 15 million-strong global Shi’a Ismaili Muslim community. The dam project features the involvement of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development. Speaking yesterday, the spiritual figurehead defended allegations linking the dam’s construction to environmental damage, stating: "Hydroelectricity is clean energy advancing sustainable development while minimising its environmental impact."
Resistance to the dam has been particularly strong from the National Association of Professional Environmentalists, a Ugandan lobby group.
The majority of the African nation’s energy is generated by hydroelectric turbines situated along the Nile. However, the twin factors of increasing demand, and a reduction in the water levels at Lake Victoria, which sources the Nile, have ignited frequent power shortages in the area.
Construction International will focus on this important new venture in the weeks and months to come.
Source - Construction International's African Reporter
