Arab Finance: The Egyptian consortium of Arab Contractors and Elsewedy Electric on August 22 marked the official opening of the Julius Nyerere Hydroelectric Power Project on Tanzania’s Rufiji River, a $2.9 billion project implemented for Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO), as per a statement.

With Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly participating on behalf of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan attended the opening, alongside senior officials from both countries and representatives of the Egyptian consortium.

Madbouly said the project reflects the depth of ties and strategic partnership between Egypt and Tanzania and serves as a model for African cooperation.

He added that the project demonstrates the capabilities of Egyptian companies to implement major development projects, transfer expertise, and build local capacity, contributing to greater African integration and cooperation.

Meanwhile, Chairman of Arab Contractors Ahmed El Assar said the project is one of Africa’s largest dams and reinforces the company’s position among a limited number of firms capable of implementing major dam and hydropower projects.

The main concrete dam spans 1,049 meters and rises 131 meters above its foundation across the Rufiji River. Roller-compacted concrete works continued for 723 days, reaching a peak production rate of about 5,000 cubic meters per day.

The project includes a reservoir with a capacity of about 34 billion cubic meters and seven water outlets for flood control, environmental protection, and year-round water availability for agriculture and fishing. The scope also covered auxiliary saddle dams, the power station, electricity transmission lines, roads, tunnels, bridges, and supporting facilities.

Construction involved about 15 million cubic meters of excavation and earthworks, nearly 3 million cubic meters of concrete, around 5.3 million cubic meters of fill materials for the saddle dams, and about 90,000 metric tons of reinforcing steel. About 13,000 workers, most of them Tanzanian, along with Egyptian personnel, contributed to the project.

For his part, President and CEO of Elsewedy Electric Ahmed Elsewedy said the project has a generation capacity of 2,115 megawatts through nine 235-MW generating units and an annual output of about 6,307 gigawatt-hours.

The dam will provide clean and renewable electricity to more than 60 million Tanzanians, supporting energy security and long-term industrial and economic growth while reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels and helping address climate change, Elsewedy said.

Elsewedy Electric’s contribution focused on installing electrical and electromechanical systems and components and grid interconnections. The company installed more than 1,000 kilometers of electrical cables and more than 235,000 diameter-inches of piping systems, while heavy lifting operations exceeded 30,000 tons in total.

Elsewedy noted that the project builds on the company’s presence in Tanzania through its integrated cable industrial complex in Kigamboni, Dar es Salaam. The facility covers 120,000 square meters, has capacity to process up to 1,300 tons of metals per month, and provides about 200 direct and 500 indirect jobs.

The company also supports local talent development through business and trade awareness sessions held annually in cooperation with four universities, hosting around 40 graduate trainees and providing practical training to about 50 students.