Ethiopia began generating power at its Blue Nile Mega Dam on Sunday, marking a major milestone in a controversial multi-billion dollar project.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, accompanied by senior officials, visited the power plant and pressed a series of buttons on an electronic screen, which officials said triggered the proceedings.
The Ethiopian Great Revival Dam (GERD) is slated to be Africa's largest hydroelectric project, but since work began first in 2011, it has been at the center of a dispute with downstream countries Egypt and Sudan.
Abiy described the development of Sunday as "the birth of a new era."
"This is good news for our continent and the downstream countries we are committed to working with," he tweeted.
Addis Ababa believes the project is essential for the electrification and development of Africa's second most populous country, but Cairo and Khartoum fear it could jeopardize their access to the vital waters of the Nile.
Abiy, wearing sunglasses and a khaki hat emblazoned with the Ethiopian flag, dismissed these concerns as he toured the site.
"As you can see, this water will generate energy as long as it flows, as it used to flow to Sudan and Egypt, unlike rumors that the Ethiopian people and government are cutting off water to starve Egypt and Sudan" he said as water gushed through the concrete. a colossus behind him.
But Cairo denounced Sunday's launch and the foreign ministry said Addis Ababa was "persistently violating" the project's declaration of principles signed by the three countries in 2015.
"Resistance to external pressure"
The $4.2 billion (€3.7 billion) dam is expected to eventually produce over 5,000 megawatts of electricity, more than double Ethiopia's current electricity generation.
Only one of the 13 turbines with an installed capacity of 375 megawatts is currently operating.
The second one will be operational within a few months, project manager Kifle Horo told AFP, adding that the dam is currently expected to be fully completed in 2024.
The 145-meter (475-foot) structure sits on both sides of the Blue Nile in the Benishangul-Gumuz region of western Ethiopia, close to the border with Sudan.
Egypt, which uses 97% of its water to irrigate and drink the Nile, considers the dam an existential threat.
The process of filling the huge reservoir of GERD began in 2020, when Ethiopia announced in July of that year that it had reached its goal of 4.9 billion cubic meters.
The total storage capacity of the reservoir is 74 billion cubic meters, and the goal for 2021 is to add 13.5 billion.
