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British Firm to Build Kenya’s Largest Water Reservoir

High Grand Falls Dam will hold 5.6 billion cubic metres of water.

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High Grand Falls Dam Kenya
Dam construction. High Grand Falls Dam will hold 5.6 billion cubic metres of water. PHOTO | COURTESY

Construction of High Grand Falls dam on River Tana in Kenya is yet to begin four years after GBM Engineering Consortium won the tender to finance, design, build, operate, and transfer the Sh250 billion dam.

The hiring of the London-based company in September 2018 followed a decision by the Public Procurement Administrative Review Board (PPRB), a state agency that resolves tender disputes, to uphold the award of the contract to the firm.

GBM Engineering won the deal in a tendering process featuring seven companies (five of them Chinese), but the National Irrigation Board (NIB) declined to accept its win.

The PPRB heard the matter and determined the dispute in favour of GBM on July 4, 2018. The agency directed the NIB to conclude the tendering process within 30 days.

NIB disregarded the ruling and cancelled the tender.

The PPRB later ruled that the government had no legal basis to cancel the tender or delay its award to the British firm.

Dubbed High Grand Falls Dam, the water reservoir will be built off Kibuka Falls on River Tana – straddling Kitui and Tharaka Nithi counties.  

5.6 billion cubic metres

The dam, which was conceived in 2009, covers 165 sq km and will hold 5.6 billion cubic metres of water that will nourish the Lamu Port and resort city while adding nearly 700MW to the national power grid.

This makes it the largest water storage facility in the country.

RELATED: Chinese Firm Inks Sh20bn Deal to Build Koru-Soin Dam

Phase one of the hydro dam project is expected to be operational by 2031 with a capacity of 495MW and will cost Sh250 billion according to government records.

The second phase with a capacity of 198MW will come in a year later – bringing the total capacity to 693MW.

Kenya will not raise funds for the project as the contractor will build and operate the dam for 20 years, to recoup its investment, before handing it over to the government.

Africa’s second largest dam

On completion, the High Grand Falls Dam will be Africa’s second largest dam after the 5,250-square kilometre Aswan High Dam in Egypt on River Nile.

The High Grand Falls Dam is part of an ambitious endeavour to build 1,000 mega dams across the country in a bid to revolutionise irrigation-based agriculture.

Other dams include Twake Dam in Makueni, which will nourish Konza City, Badasa Dam (Marsabit), Hare Dam (Nyando), Sio Dam (West Pokot) and Mwache Dam in Kwale.

RELATED: List of Ongoing Mega Dam Projects in Kenya

In 2014, the government said it had finalised procurement with the China State Construction Engineering Corp to build the High Grand Falls Dam at a cost of Sh189 billion.

The project was to be funded through a public private partnership (PPP) model, with firms from China and the Export-Import Bank of China providing the finances.

Months later, Kenya decided to tender the project afresh under the build-operate-transfer model that does not require it to procure any funding for the project.

Albert Andeso holds a degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Nairobi. He has extensive experience in construction and has been involved in many roads, bridges, and buildings projects.