Possibility of renewed tensions as Ethiopia completes third filling of Nile mega-dam

Despite Egypt’s letter to the UN Security Council voicing its objections to Ethiopia’s plans to fill the controversial dam without a three-way agreement, Ethiopia announced Friday it has moved on to complete the third filling of its mega-dam on the Blue Nile.

This new milestone for Ethiopia could raise further tensions with downstream neighbours Egypt and Sudan.
The massive $4.2 billion dam, set to be the largest hydro-electric scheme in Africa, has been at the centre of a regional dispute ever since Ethiopia broke ground on the project in 2011.

On Thursday, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, announced that the second turbine was already generating electricity, despite continued objections by Egypt and Sudan over the project. There was no immediate reaction from Egypt or Sudan about Friday’s development.

The development comes a day after Ethiopia said it had launched electricity production from the second turbine at the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in the northwest of the country. Both Cairo and Khartoum fear the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam could threaten their access to vital Nile waters and have demanded a written agreement on the dam’s filling and operation.

Up until now, there is still no agreement between Ethiopia and its downstream neighbours Egypt and Sudan about the GERD’s operations despite talks held under the auspices of the African Union.
Egypt, no doubt, relies on the Nile for about 97 percent of its irrigation and drinking water, while Sudan believes the filling of the dam could affect its supply of water to agricultural purposes.