A barricade to help hold water is now possible, after a successful deviation of water from its original bed, a major step for the construction of the Lom Pangar dam, the government said last week after a field trip to the site in the East Region. It completed the first of the phase the work by the Chinese company, China International Water (CWE).
According to the Director General of the Electricity Development Corporation (EDC), the project owner, the successful derivation of the Lom River opens the way to meet the deadline for delivery of the said work. “Many dams around the world have not been completed or continued, having failed to perform the bypass. And in our situation, we have successfully completed before the planned timing” said Theodore Nsangou.
Cameroonians will see a 120 MW increase in electricity generation at two existing hydropower plants that will improve the reliability of power supply for up to five million people and help to lower the cost of power, the world bank said in 2012 after granting a loan for the construction of the dam.
Besides, there is a 30 MW power plant which will replace expensive thermal generation and provide reliable access to electricity in eastern Cameroon. Here, power supply is often erratic, with frequent power cuts especially during the dry season.
Cameroon’s Head of State, Paul Biya laid the foundation stone of the hydroelectric dam on August 3, 2012.