Title:Towards Operation of Cascade Dams, Approaches of NBI in the Eastern Nile

Title:Towards operation of cascade dams, approaches of NBI in the Eastern Nile”

Michael Abebe

Regional Dam Safety Coordinator, Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO)

Abstract

Eastern Nile Water storage dams provide significant opportunities for sustainable economic development of the EN dams contribute to the creation of enabling conditions for food, energy, water security and to cope with climate change associated risks.

International experience demonstrates that riparian countries could achieve short- and long-term benefits through coordinated operation of existing and planned storage dam facilities. The benefit includes; boosting of hydropower generated, enhanced flood and drought management, climate change mitigation and cooperative irrigation development.

The Eastern Nile is home to number of large and complex storage dams. There are four existing cascade dams along the Abay/Blue Nile-Main Nile (Roseires, Sennar, Merowe, and High Aswan Dam) with an aggregate storage capacity of 182 BCM. Further the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance dam (GERD) in Ethiopia, with a storage capacity of 74 BCM will be commissioned soon. There are also three cascade dams along the Tekeze-Atbara Rivers (Tekeze, TheUpper Atbara complex ( Rumelaand Burdana dam), Kashim Al Girba).Other dams are also in the pipeline in the subbasin.

At present, those dams in Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan that are operating are managed without any coordination. However, uncoordinated operations of these large dams, compounded with climate seasonality, variability and/or rainfall variability, would bring changes to the river system, alter water use and management of dams and thus potentially create tensions among riparian countries. As of now, even if the countries chose to coordinate the management of these dams, they cannot simply because the technical (e.g. water release and operation rules), the institutional (e.g. responsible and accountable entity for coordinated management) and the legal (e.g. treaties encoding coordination) are not there.

Recognizing lack of coordinated reservoir operation framework at sub basin level and that coordinated operation of dams has great potential for enhancing efficient and more optimal use of water; ENTRO has developed a Road Map towards the establishment of coordinated cascade reservoir operation mechanism for Eastern Nile countries. The Road Map has outlined the steps countries could take together to develop joint operating rules and accompanying institutional mechanisms for coordinated operation of dams in Eastern Nile.

Recently ENTRO in collaboration with Nile Sec, as part of the Nile-Sec strategic water resources analysis, has initiated a preparatory study of Coordinated Operation of Transboundary Cascade Dams in Eastern Nile: The presentation attempts to highlight the objectives, processes, scope of work and expected results of the study.

A short biography

Mr. Michael Abebe holds B.Sc. degree in Hydraulic Engineering and M.Sc in Hydropower Development. He has over 25 years experience in the water and energy sectorsin national, Sub-basin and Nile Basin scales. Most recently heserved as Regional Coordinator of the First Eastern Nile Joint Multipurpose Program Identification studies (JMP-1 ID Studies) in ENTRO ( 2009-2012).

At present Michael is Regional Coordinator of Dam Safety in the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO). He is responsible for the overall implementation of dam safety management in the Eastern Nile.