The Gerdwhich stands for Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, is made up of two dams, of which the main one is the largest gravity dam in compact rulled concrete, by volume. The work produces a huge amount of renewable energy, exploiting the power of the Nile Azzurro.
We are in Ethiopia, on the border with Sudan: here the blue Nile descends from the slopes of theEthiopian plateauwhere it comes from, and it is therefore possible to exploit this difference in height for the production of energy.
How is the gerd done? The numbers of the work
Let’s start first of all from the drug numbers of the work.
There main dam it is up to 170 meters and long 1 kilometer and eight. The water basin can contain an impressive amount of water: let’s talk about 74 billion cubic meters, which correspond to about 30 million Olympic swimming pools.
To complete the project there is one secondary damlower, but longer 5 kilometers, With the task of preventing the water from pouring when the pelvis is at most.
And then we come to the heart of the work, the two hydroelectric power plantsplaced at the foot of the main dam: together they host 13 Francis turbinesfor a total installed power of 5,150 MW and an estimated annual production of 15,700 GWh. How much are 15,700 GWh? It is such a quantity as to feed about 6 million families.
The technical challenges
In the video you can see 3D images, videos and reconstructions of the Gerd and in particular, we will explain how to build such a work, answering in particular to three questions:
1) How do you build a dam in the middle of the river?
In fact, you must think that here the Nile Azzurro It can reach a flow rate of about during the rainy season 8000 cubic meters per second. To give you a comparison, the average flow of the Tiber river is approximately 230-240 cubic meters per second.
For this reason, it was necessary to deviate the course of the river and in the video you will see how this delicate operation is carried out.
2) How to deal with the biggest challenge, or how to build a dam that must hold up to Huge pressure of water?
You must know that Gerd’s main dam is one of what they are called a massive gravity: It means that it supports the pressure of water thanks to its size, its own weight and the triangular form.
3) What are the logistical challenges to build a work in a remote territory?
To create this work, a series of Infrastructures and servicesin order to allow the movement and hospitality of beyond 10,000 people. A construction site of this is in fact in fact as a small town! Eh yes, in fact the people involved for the construction of the Gerd have been overall 25,000of which over 95% of local staff.
This work, created by the Italian webuild group, partially entered into operation in 2022 and inaugurated in September 2025.
