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🇪🇬 Egypt /Energy & Infrastructure

Ethiopia's GERD Dam Capacity Lower Than Claimed, Says Egyptian Expert

From Egypt Independent · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • An Egyptian water resources expert claims the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) has a storage capacity of 64 billion cubic meters, not the 74 billion stated by Ethiopia.
  • The discrepancy arises from an "emergency middle spillway" designed into the dam, which reduces its overall storage potential.
  • The expert argues Ethiopia's insistence on the higher figure is political, aimed at managing public perception rather than reflecting technical reality.

A prominent Egyptian water resources expert, Abbas Sharaky, has challenged Ethiopia's official figures for the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam's (GERD) storage capacity. Sharaky asserts that the reservoir's actual capacity is 64 billion cubic meters (bcm), significantly less than the 74 bcm figure publicized by Addis Ababa.

Had Ethiopia abided by international guidelines for projects on transboundary rivers, we would not have opposed any developmental initiative on the Nile.

— Abbas SharakyExplaining Egypt's stance on the GERD project.

Sharaky explained that the dispute is not about the dam's existence or purpose but Ethiopia's unilateral construction on an international river without adhering to global norms. He stated that Egypt and Sudan reject the "political fait accompli" approach adopted since 2011.

However, imposing a political fait accompli is something that both Egypt and Sudan have fundamentally rejected from 2011 to this day.

— Abbas SharakyDescribing the basis of the dispute over the GERD.

The core of the technical disagreement lies in the dam's design, specifically an "emergency middle spillway." Sharaky detailed that contractors lowered the dam's central section by 5 meters across a 220-meter width to create this spillway. This feature is intended to rapidly discharge excess water during emergencies, preventing catastrophic damage to power stations. However, this design choice directly impacts storage capacity.

At this specific elevation, each meter of water depth in the reservoir equals roughly 2 billion cubic meters of storage. Consequently, lowering the center by 5 meters translates to a capacity loss of approximately 10 billion cubic meters.

— Abbas SharakyDetailing the engineering impact on the dam's storage capacity.

According to Sharaky's calculations, each meter of water depth in the reservoir equates to approximately 2 bcm of storage. Consequently, the 5-meter reduction in the center translates to a loss of about 10 bcm, bringing the maximum storage capacity down to 64 bcm. Sharaky suggests Ethiopia maintains the 74 bcm figure for political and public relations reasons, to avoid admitting a lower-than-promoted capacity to its citizens.

64 billion is still a massi

— Abbas SharakyAcknowledging the substantial water volume despite the reduced capacity.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Egypt Independent in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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