Despite Disagreements, Sudan Plans to Buy Electricity from Ethiopia
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Ethiopia says that a number of countries have expressed willingness to buy electricity from it, including Sudan, and that "negotiations are still ongoing."
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The Dam's electricity production is expected to reach 6.45 gigawatts
Ethiopia said, on Thursday, that a number of African countries stated their wish to purchase electricity from it, including Sudan, which asked to purchase 1000 MW, according to the Ethiopian news agency.
Andualem Sia, Ethiopia Electric Power's (EEP) Planning Executive Director, said, "EEP experts went to Khartoum last month and Sudanese experts would soon arrive in Ethiopia to continue the talks," adding that "similarly, South Sudan, Kenya, and Djibouti have expressed interest to purchase electric power, and negotiations have been underway."
As far as South Sudan is concerned, "a team of experts will soon travel to South Sudan to conduct a study on the construction of the power line," the Executive Director said.
"The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) benefits not only Ethiopia, but also Africa," Andualem said, declaring that "the current demand for electricity from these sisterly countries shows their great expectation in the Dam."
On July 20th, Ethiopia completed the second filling of the Renaissance Dam. It did not declare how much water was stored in the Dam; however, it had announced before that the targeted volume for the second filling was 13.5 billion cubic meters.
The UN Security Council had held a session to discuss the Renaissance Dam crisis between Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan, yet it did not pass a resolution or recommendation.
Ethiopia began construction on the Dam in 2011 with the purpose of generating electricity. Despite signing a declaration of principles, which states that all three countries will abide by the agreement they would reach through dialogue on the Dam's operation and filling, negotiations were not successful in reaching a deal.
While Egypt fears the Dam's effects on its yearly 55.5 billion cubic meter share of water, Khartoum has concerns over the Dam's effect on operating the Sudanese dams.
