ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Ethiopia has officially opened the Gibe 3 hydroelectric dam, which is among the biggest in Africa, despite concerns by environmentalists about its impact downstream and upon neighboring countries.

Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said Saturday while opening the dam that Ethiopia aims to produce 15,000 megawatts of electricity in the coming five years.

Officials say Gibe 3 makes Ethiopia one of the biggest producers and consumers of renewable energy in Africa. They say the dam will help Eithopia meet its own and neighboring countries’ increasing demands for cheap and renewable electricity.

Gibe 3 is part of the Ethiopian government’s efforts to build a series of dams on the Omo River, which runs into Lake Turkana in Kenya. Environmentalists say the dams could lead to livelihood losses and increased local conflicts. </s> Ethiopia on Saturday inaugurated a hydroelectric dam that aims to double the country’s electricity output, but which critics say is a threat to locals and a UNESCO-listed lake in Kenya. The Gibe III dam, which reaches 243 metres in height, is the third-largest dam in Africa and the biggest in a series built along the Omo River. When it comes fully online, the Gibe III is expected to produce 1,870 megawatts of power, enough to sell energy abroad including to neighbouring Kenya.

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But environmentalists and rights groups warn the project will dramatically decrease water levels downstream all the way to Kenya’s Lake Turkana, which derives 80 per cent of its resources from the river.

The lives of hundreds of thousands of people who make their living in the Omo River valley and on Turkana, both UNESCO World Heritage sites, would be affected, they say. UNESCO has previously condemned the project and Human Rights Watch has accused the Ethiopian government of pushing people from the Omo Valley to free up land for state sugar cane plantations.

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Gibe III, located about 350 kilometres southwest of Addis Ababa, took nine years to build and cost 1.5 billion euros (USD 1.6 billion), with 60 per cent of financing coming from the Chinese export credit agency China Exim Bank. Local radio reported that Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and other ministers attended the inauguration, held a year after the dam began generating electricity.

With no natural gas or oil reserves of its own, Ethiopia is banking on renewable energy to help foster energy independence and economic growth. Its Grand Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile, which is slated to be Africa’s largest-ever dam, is expected to produce 6,000 megawatts — tantamount to six nuclear reactors — when it is completed in 2017.

The Blue and the White Nile rivers converge in Khartoum and from there run north into Egypt as the Nile. But the project has poisoned relations with Egypt, which is almost totally reliant on the Nile for agriculture and drinking water, and fears the dam will hit its supplies. </s> The Gibe III dam, which reaches 243 metres (800 feet) in height, is the third-largest dam in Africa and the biggest in a series built along the Omo River. By (AFP/File)

Addis Ababa (AFP) - Ethiopia on Saturday inaugurated a hydroelectric dam that aims to double the country's electricity output, but which critics say is a threat to locals and a UNESCO-listed lake in Kenya.

The Gibe III dam, which reaches 243 metres (800 feet) in height, is the third-largest dam in Africa and the biggest in a series built along the Omo River.

When it comes fully online, the Gibe III is expected to produce 1,870 megawatts of power, enough to sell energy abroad including to neighbouring Kenya. The dam has been generating electricity for about a year.

"This hydroelectricity plant, with other ongoing projects, fulfils our domestic power needs and will be provided for foreign markets," Ethiopia's Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said in a speech inaugurating the dam.

But environmentalists and rights groups warn the project will dramatically decrease water levels downstream all the way to Kenya's Lake Turkana, which derives 80 percent of its resources from the river.

The lives of hundreds of thousands of people who make their living in the Omo River valley and on Turkana, both UNESCO World Heritage sites, would be affected, they say.

UNESCO has previously condemned the project and Human Rights Watch has accused the Ethiopian government of uprooting people from the Omo Valley to free up land for state-run sugar cane plantations.

"The project has overcome challenges such as financial and environment issues," Desalegn said. "Some people who think they have a concern for the environment have been downgrading the project rather than being reasonable."

Project boosters say the dam will allow authorities to better regulate the flow of the Omo, which spools out over 700 kilometres. They also deny the dam is primarily a way to ensure a steady flow of water to irrigate cotton and sugar cane plantations.

Gibe III, located about 350 kilometres (220 miles) southwest of Addis Ababa, took nine years to build and cost 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion), with 60 percent of financing coming from the Chinese export credit agency China Exim Bank.

Ethiopia was the world's fastest growing economy last year at 10.2 percent, however the International Monetary Fund estimates that the worst drought in 30 years is likely to see this plummet to 4.5 percent in 2016.

With no natural gas or oil reserves of its own, the Horn of Africa country is banking on renewable energy to help foster energy independence and economic growth.

Its Grand Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile, which is slated to be Africa's largest-ever dam, is expected to produce 6,000 megawatts -- tantamount to six nuclear reactors -- when it is completed in 2017.

The Blue and the White Nile rivers converge in Khartoum and from there run north into Egypt as the Nile.

But the project has poisoned relations with Egypt, which is almost totally reliant on the Nile for agriculture and drinking water, and fears the dam will hit its supplies. </s> Ethiopia on Saturday inaugurated the €1.5 billion ($1.57 billion) Gibe III hydro plant on River Omo.

The plant has 10 turbines each with a capacity of 187MW, and will increase Ethiopia's total electricity output to 4,238 megawatts.

It is located 450km southwest of the capital Addis Ababa and is expected to supply both domestic and export markets.

With a capacity of 1,870MW, Gibe III is the third plant on the Gibe-Omo hydroelectric cascade. The others are Gibe I and Gibe II, which are already operating. The government plans to build Gibe IV and V further downstream.

Construction works of Gibe III began in July 2006 and was financed by China’s ICBC bank through a loan, covering 60 per cent of the cost while the Ethiopian government covered 40 per cent.

Electricity from the plant will be transmitted through a 400 kilovolt line stretching up to the outskirt of Addis Ababa – Kaliti power plant.

The dam was constructed by Italian firm Salini Impregilo and Dong Fang of China.

Last year, Ethiopia commissioned the first phase of electricity generation at the Gibe III plant from three turbines with an output of 561MW. </s> A dam has burst its banks in Kenya’s Rift Valley, killing at least 38 people and forcing hundreds from their homes, officials have said.

Water burst through the banks of the Patel dam in Solai, 190km north-west of the capital, Nairobi, on Wednesday night, sweeping away hundreds of homes, including those on the expansive Nyakinyua farm, which borders the reservoir.

“We have recovered 38 bodies and many people are missing. It is a disaster,” said Joseph Kioko, chief of police in the town of Rongai.

Almost an entire village was swept by silt and water, said Gideon Kibunja, the Nakuru county police chief in charge of criminal investigations.

Up to 40 people were rescued from the mud and taken to hospital in rescue operations conducted by the Kenya Red Cross and Nakuru County disaster management teams. Many more are feared to be trapped under debris and mud. Officials said the dam water and mud spewed out of the reservoir and submerged homes over a radius of nearly 2km (1.2 miles).

Kenya’s interior cabinet secretary, Fred Matiangi, has arrived at the site to talk with those affected and assess the situation.

It has been suggested that the walls of the dam may have collapsed due to the huge volume of water accumulated following heavy rainfall since March.

According to BBC reports, local leaders want to know whether the farmer was licensed to erect the dam, one of three he owns in the area. There are concerns that the other two dams, which are also said to be full, could also burst their banks.

Amid mounting scrutiny of the local authorities, Lee Maiyani Kinyanjui, governor of Nakuru County, tweeted: “We assure residents that we are doing our best to evacuate affected families to safety and assist victims [to] get medical attention. We urge residents to be vigilant due to flooding caused by heavy rains experienced in the county and other parts of the country.”

Kenya is already reeling from the effect of heavy rains and flash flooding that have hit east Africa.

Before the dam burst, flooding had claimed the lives of at least 132 people since March, the Kenyan government said on Wednesday.

At least 225,436 people have been displaced from their homes, according to a government statement. Military helicopters and personnel have for the past week been deployed to rescue people marooned by the flooding.

The floods hit as Kenya was recovering from a severe drought that had affected half of the country. </s> SOLAI, Kenya (Reuters) - A dam burst in Kenya after weeks of torrential rain, unleashing a torrent of water that smashed into two villages killing at least 21 people and causing “huge destruction”, rescue services and government officials said.

The walls of the Patel dam, situated on top of a hill in Nakuru county, 190 km (120 miles) northwest of Nairobi, gave way late on Wednesday.

Floodwaters swept away powerlines, homes and buildings, including a primary school, a Reuters photographer on the scene said, as rescue workers picked through rubble and mud searching for survivors.

East Africa, much of which suffered severe drought last year, has been hit by heavy rain over the last two months that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people in Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia and Uganda.

Even before this week’s dam-burst, rains had killed 132 people and displaced 222,000 in Kenya alone, according to the government.

The St. John Ambulance service said at least 21 people had been killed downstream of the dam. The Kenya Red Cross said 39 people had been rescued from the mud.

“The water has caused huge destruction of both life and property. The extent of the damage has yet to be ascertained,” Nakuru governor Lee Kinyajui said in a statement. </s> With the Kouga Dam down to 7.7% of capacity yesterday, a team will start testing water quality this weekend to help gauge any future contamination if fish start dying.

The dam supplies water to Patensie, Hankey, Nelson Mandela Bay and farmers in the Gamtoos River Valley.

Gamtoos Irrigation Board (GIB) chief executive Pierre Joubert said samples would be taken, starting on Sunday. The level of the Kouga Dam had fallen to 7.1%, but was boosted slightly by rain on Monday.

The dam used to extend 42km up the Kouga River west of Patensie, but is now just 10km long.

The low water level and high, steep sides of the dam do not make access to the surface easy but GIB’s staff would let themselves down by ropes and use a boat to get to a suitable sampling spot, Joubert said.

“Fish haven’t started dying yet, but I’m afraid they could if the water keeps on dropping and that could result in a serious health threat.

“We will be doing the sampling approximately twice a week, so this initial step is to get us in the mode and establish a baseline reading.”

When the dam was filled in 1970, the trees were not removed and many are still slowly rotting in the water and consuming oxygen.

As the water drops, the oxygen available to the fish will be reduced still further and if the process continues, the indigenous kurper and eels and alien bass, carp and barbel could die.

Joubert said if fish did start dying, it would not be easy to drag the carcasses out with a net because of the submerged trees.

“I do not know what the answer will be. The dam has never been this low before so we’re in new territory.” The dam channels water to Nelson Mandela Bay via a canal and the small Loerie balancing dam near Thornhill. </s> BANGKOK (AP) — State media say a hydroelectric dam has collapsed in southeastern Laos, leaving several people confirmed dead and hundreds missing.

The official Lao news agency KPL reported Tuesday that the Xepian-Xe Nam Noy hydropower dam in Attapeu province collapsed Monday evening, releasing large amounts of water and sweeping away houses, leaving more than more than 6,600 people homeless.

The dam was constructed by a joint venture led by South Korean companies, with Thai and Lao partners. It was scheduled to open this year, but it was unclear if it had begun operating.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> A hydroelectric dam collapsed in southeastern Laos, leaving an unknown number of people dead and hundreds missing, state media said today.

The official Lao news agency KPL said the Xepian-Xe Nam Noy hydropower dam in Attapeu province collapsed on Monday evening, releasing large amounts of water that swept away houses and made more than 6,600 people homeless.

The dam was constructed by a joint venture led by South Korean companies, with Thai and Lao partners.

The project, scheduled to begin operating this year, was still under construction, KPL reported.

It described the portion that collapsed as a "saddle dam," which is an auxiliary dam used to hold water beyond what is held by the main dam.

Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith "suspended the planned monthly meeting of the government for August and led his Cabinet members and other senior officials to Sanamxay (district) to monitor rescue and relief efforts being made for flood victims," KPL said.

Many areas of Laos have recently been hit by flooding from seasonal rains.

Electricity from several hydroelectric dams provides a large share of Laos' export earnings, with Thailand being a major buyer.

KPL said the Xepian-Xe Nam Noy project cost an estimated $US1.02 billion.
Ethiopia officially opens the Omo River Gibe III hydroelectric dam, one of the biggest in Africa, that is predicted to double the country’s electricity output. Critics are concerned about this dam's impact on locals, on the environment, including Kenya's Lake Turkana, and on neighboring countries.