Beijing
China -owned company Three Gorges Corporation has separated itself from the Grand Ega Dam Construction Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo). The project claims to be the world’s largest hydroelectric plant, which can help resolve Africa’s energy crisis. This move of China can give a major blow to the progress of the project.
The construction of the Grand Ega Dam is proposed on the Congo River and was being developed as the world’s largest hydroelectric plant. The project expected an estimated 40,000 MW power generation capacity, which could supply energy to the entire Africa. However, the project has been continuously delayed in the last few decades and construction work has never started.
Why did China take steps?
The Three Gorges Corporation decided to withdraw from its participation. However, there has been no official statement regarding the reasons behind this decision. Experts believe that the cost of the project, government government instability and concerns about the environment can be the main reasons for this decision. Also, changing priority for other projects and investments of China can also have an impact.
Impact on project
The Chinese company exiting this project is seen as a big sign that the future of the project can now be even more uncertain. The project can cause a major dispute between the Government of Congo and international investors, especially when the estimated cost of the project is around $ 80 billion. Dr Congo is already facing allegations of government instability and corruption, which can make the construction work even more difficult.
A solution to Africa’s energy crisis?
The importance of this project was extremely high in view of Africa’s energy crisis. Millions of people in Africa are living without electricity and the power needs of Africa could be met only by projects like Grand Ega Dam. However, despite the prediction of the project, China’s drawing hand from this project can prove to be a major setback for Africa.
Now the question arises whether the Congo government and other international partners will be able to resume this project. Although the Congo government has claimed that work on the project is going on, but the three Gorges Corporation exiting the project can create even more difficulty in realizing this big dream.
