Africa |
A new wave
Despite its potential, developing hydropower across the African region can still be quite challenging. However, as IWP&DC reports here, a new wave of projects is gradually gaining momentum
Below: The Jiji hydrolectric project in Burundi was inaugurated in June 2025
ALTHOUGH ONLY 10% OF THE African continent’s technical hydropower potential has currently been harnessed, development is picking up pace with the sector delivering 20% of electricity from 43.5GW of its total installed hydropower capacity. And as a new wave of hydropower projects begin to emerge, with many of them led by private developers, the International Hydropower Association says they offer hope that hydro will help to power the region’s clean energy transition. Leading the swell of activity is the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). It’s the largest hydropower project ever built in Africa and was commissioned by Ethiopian Electric Power, designed and constructed by Webuild, and inaugurated in September 2025. Described as being of an extraordinary scale and unprecedented engineering complexity, it’s even
it is currently the largest RCC gravity dam built in Africa by volume, with a reservoir surface area of 1875km2 volume of 74 billion m3
been slated as one of the world’s most ambitious and advanced infrastructure projects in recent years. Located approximately 700km north-west of the Ethiopian capital city of Addis Ababa, in the Benishangul- Gumaz region along the Blue Nile, GERD is 1800m long and 170m high. With a total RCC volume of 10.7 million m3
and a .
GERD’s hydroelectric power stations are located on the right and left banks of the river and consist of 13 Francis turbines, with a total installed capacity of 5150MW and an average production of 15,700GWh/year. Over 25,000 people – mostly Ethiopians – worked on the project, gaining skills and expertise that can be applied to future projects. Some of GERD’s positive economic and social impacts include development of a new town around the site, complete with a hospital, two equipped medical clinics, a school, sports facilities, a bakery producing traditional Ethiopian flatbread, and road infrastructure.
Inga 3
Earlier in June 2025, the World Bank approved a US$250 million credit from the International Development Association for the first phase of the US$1 billion Inga 3 Development Programme. This is set to help the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) lay the foundations for the sustainable development of DRC’s largest power project to date – starting with investments in local people, infrastructure and jobs. Access to energy is one of the most significant
roadblocks to DRC’s economic transformation and job creation at scale. Only 21% of Congolese people have access to electricity, but this is set to change as DRC’s government is embarking on a range of investments and
20 | January 2026 |
www.waterpowermagazine.com
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