Twelve experts from Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia started on Monday evaluating four technical offers by international consulting firms ahead of declaring the winner who will prepare and carry out the studies of the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in no more than 12 months.
In remarks on the sidelines of a tour in South Sudan, Egyptian Irrigation Minister Hossam Moghazy said the evaluation will end in 10 days. The winner will be declared on 4 March during a meeting for the three countries in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum. He added that the evaluation process is very complicated process that the three countries should consider conditions agreed on in a previous meeting in Cairo.
More evaluation points were included to obtain accurate studies in time between five months and one year, he said. Eighty percent of the points were allocated to the technical side, while 20 percent were allocated to the financial side.
Several Egyptian developmental project will be carried out in South Sudan, within Egyptian plan of cooperation with Nile Basin countries, he said. The plan includes projects of underground water wells to provide water to places with no water in South Sudan. Five studies over construction of Waw dam will be concluded to generate electricity.
Moghazy and his Sudanese counterpart Jemma Nunu Kumba held the first meeting for the joint technical committee for bilateral cooperation. They inspected sites of the Egyptian projects that are being carried out in South Sudan.
Moghazy opened four underground wells at costs of LE6 million to provide drinking water to Juba city. He will also inspect the Waw dam site, saying that studies on it started in 2009.
Meanwhile, Sudanese water resources minister Moataz Moussa said fears about the Renaissance Dam is a common factor at all the countries.
In an interview with the Sudanese official TV on Sunday, the minister welcomed the Nile Basin countries meeting that took place two days ago in Khartoum with participation of irrigation ministers of all the Nile Basin countries.
“Cooperation between Egypt, Ethiopia and Khartoum is imperative. The ongoing meetings between the three countries made the base for strong ties that will help resolve countries against the three countries to take advantage of the Nile water.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
