Construction of Aswan dam

Aswan High Dam is a rock-fill dam located at the northern border between Egypt and Sudan. The dam is fed by the River Nile and the reservoir forms Lake Nasser.

Construction for the project began in 1960 and was completed in 1968. It was officially inaugurated in 1971. The total investment for constructing the dam reached $1bn. With a reservoir capacity of 132km³, the Aswan High Dam provides water for around 33,600km² of irrigation land. It serves the irrigation needs of both Egypt and Sudan, controls flooding, generates power, and helps in improving navigation across the Nile.

Egypt and Sudan reached an agreement in 1959 that saw the allocation of 18.5 cubic kilometres of water to Sudan. The Aswan Low Dam was constructed in 1898 under the direction of Sir William Willcocks. The dam was completed in 1902 and was raised twice between 1907 and 1912, followed by a further two between 1929 and 1933 to further alleviate the Nile from flooding.

However, the Aswan Low Dam was not adequate to control the annual flooding, which gave rise to the idea of constructing a higher dam in 1952, with funding from the World Bank being sought in 1954. The dam was constructed to regulate the flow of the river, which serves the whole of Egypt.

Flooding of the Nile occurs annually, with almost half of the water being drained into the sea wastefully. The dam controls floods by regulating the flow of river and supplies water for irrigation throughout the year, which almost doubles the agricultural yield.

The dam also improved navigation across the Nile, benefiting the tourism and fishing industries. Water from the dam is used to feed 12 power turbines, which provides half of Egypt’s power demands. The reservoir also helps supply water during droughts.

Aswan High Dam measures 111m in height, 3,830m in length, and has a base width of 980m. The spillway has a discharge capacity of 11,000m³ a second.

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