The Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) has awarded the
$53.6-million contract for the rehabilitation of the Kariba Dam spillway, a
major component of the Kariba Dam rehabilitation project (KDRP), to a
consortium comprising GE Hydro France & Freyssinet International.
ZRA CE Munyaradzi
Munodawafa on Monday confirmed that, together with the plunge pool
reshaping, “the refurbishment of the spillway will ensure the long-term safe
operation of the Kariba Dam for many more years, [as well as its] continued
contribution to Zambia and Zimbabwe’s energy security and economic prosperity”.
The spillway will be refurbished over four years
and is expected to be commissioned by the end of 2023.
The contractor started mobilising to site in
September and will complete this process gradually over a period of ten months.
The spillway refurbishment works are expected to
generate a limited number of jobs for unskilled and semiskilled workers.
However, the works will stimulate local businesses, given the influx of people
into the area.
The spillway works, like the plunge pool works,
will not require the relocation of people from the project site or adversely
affect water levels in the reservoir and fauna and flora in the dam area,
Munodawafa said.
The KDRP is funded by four cooperating partners,
namely the European Union, the World Bank, the African Development Bank (AfDB)
and the government of Sweden.
The loan and grant financing committed to the KDRP
project by the World Bank and the AfDB are primarily funding the spillway
rehabilitation works and the supervision costs of both the spillway
refurbishment and plunge pool reshaping works contracts.
ZRA operates, maintains and manages the Kariba Dam on behalf of the governments of Zambia and Zimbabwe. http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/zra-selects-contractor-for-54m-kariba-dam-spillway-rehabilitation-2019-10-01/rep_id:4136
