Published on Saturday, 20 July 2013 02:29-
Written by DEOGRATIAS MUSHI
IN August last year, the Prime Minister, Mr Mizengo Pinda, led a team of government officials to Brazil on a working visit. The possibility for the host government to help Tanzania build a huge hydropower project at Stieglers Gorge along Rufiji River was one of the items on the visits agenda.
Mr Pinda held talks with political leaders and industrialists in the vibrant South American nation on several matters of mutual interest. The delegation comprised of government officials, experts and some members from the private sector.
This was a governments effort to see how the relations between Tanzania and Brazil could be strengthened for the benefit of both countries. Among the delegates were members from the Rufiji Basin Development Authority (RUBADA), the governments agency entrusted with developing Stiglers gorge to a full potential for the benefit of the country.
Stieglers Gorge straddles River Rufiji vicinity and is within Rufiji Basin, which falls under RUBADAs jurisdiction. The visit to Brazil could go in the books of history of this nation should everything go as planned. It now seems to be the genesis and eventually completion of Stiglers Gorge power project and, therefore, a long-term solution to Tanzanias electricity woes.
It should be noted that the trip was a follow up to the earlier one by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mr Bernard Membe, in September 2010, whose entourage included RUBADA officials. In what seems to be a result of the Fourth Phase governments efforts to find a lasting solution to the power problem, a team of experts from Odebrecht Company Limited, a Brazilian firm that has shown interest to undertake the project, has already visited Tanzania twice.
On both visits, the experts on dam construction visited the gorge and other parts of Rufiji River. The Director General of RUBADA, Mr Aloyce Masanja, says that second visit was meant to collect more data on the viability of the project before signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). This second visit is meant to further collect data on the feasibility of the project before we reach an agreement for project implementation, he said.
The first visit of the team of experts to Tanzania was meant to make an assessment of the Stieglers Gorge Power Project and concluded that the project is a viable one, easily to implement and with the capacity to produce significant electricity.
According to Mr Masanja, the final experts report is expected to come out before the end of this year while the MoU between the company and RUBADA on behalf of the government of Tanzania is expected to be signed before next January 15. It is expected that the design job will take not more than a year.
A Senior Consultant from Odebrecht Company Limited, Mr Jean Comtesse, says that they were in Tanzania for the second time essentially to contribute to the technical improvement of the project. Having the best technical solution will have an impact on the final characteristic of the project and on its environment which everyone knows is very critical, Mr Comtesse said.
The project, with the governments blessings, has the potential to produce 2100 MW. Brazil produces over 85 per cent of her energy by using hydropower. Mr Masanja noted that RUBADA believes that come 2015, Stieglers Gorge Power Project will start producing electricity and therefore bring a huge relief to the ongoing power crises experienced in the country.
Odebrecht Company Limited is reputed for its involvement in big and successful construction of big hydropower projects in the world. It was involved in construction of the worlds second power project found in Brazil with the capacity to produce 14,000 MW. Apart from having projects in various parts of the world, it has also ongoing projects in neighboring countries of Mozambique and Angola.
Once completed, Stieglers Gorge Power Project will occupy 1200 square kilometers of the Selous Game Reserve with 54,000 square kilometres. According to Mr Masanja, the whole of the Rufiji Basin has the potential to produce 4,000 MW. Currently, Tanzania needs 1500 MW but the country has the capacity to produce only 350 MW.
