After more than 40 years of construction, the Volta River Authority (VRA) has announced plans to renovate the 160 megawatt hydropower Kpong Dam and spillway gates in Akuse, Eastern Region.
At a stakeholder engagement gathering attended by chiefs, assembly members, and opinion leaders from Akuse, Torgome, Fodzoku, Natriku, and the neighboring areas, the news was made.
The purpose of the conference, which covered the project’s ramifications, was to get input from the communities regarding their worries and strategies for reducing both the project’s possible advantages and disadvantages.
The purpose of involving stakeholders and community people, according to Kwaku Wiafe, Director of Engineering Services at VRA, was to enlighten them about the proposed Kpong Dam repair project, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency.
He clarified that because the dam was filled with stones, the project’s goal was to restore the dike.
Some of them had been pushed over the whole length by the action of sea waves on the rocks over a period of forty years.
According to him, they had originally planned to fix it but quickly discovered that a new layer of rocks would turn it into a new dam and increase its lifespan.
He stated:
“Since the dam at Akuse only permits water from Akosombo to pass and if the water is coming from Akosombo, the spillway must be prepared to allow it to pass, otherwise it will overtop it, which is why we must ensure that our spillways are extremely dependable in light of climate change and other issues,” he said.
“So the reliability of the spillways is critical to the dam’s safety, and by improving the stability of the dyke and the reliability of the spillways, the overall safety of the dam is enhanced, which goes a long way towards protecting both downstream communities and ensuring that the asset’s integrity is maintained so that Ghanaians can continue to benefit from a reliable power supply.”
The shoddy 10-kilometer road from Okwenya Junction to Akuse will also be rehabilitated for haulage trucks and other motor vehicles, the director added.
According to him, this decision was made in response to protests from other drivers, VRA employees, and Akuse locals. First-class roads would be created by improving the current one.
Further on this
In response to some stakeholders’ worries about the extinction of certain fish species and possible water contamination, Mr. Wiafe clarified that the work would not pollute the water in any way.
Since they would not be using the fishing landing site, it would not also have an impact on fishing. Additionally, haulage trucks would not be permitted to exceed the 15 km/h speed restriction.
To reduce dust, the road would receive frequent waterings.
In a presentation, VRA civil engineer Mr. Emmanuel Darko Thompson said they planned to repair the spillway gate and the upstream dykes.
He noted that the objective was not to replace the gate, but rather to restore it, particularly the corroded gates.
He mentioned that they had planned to restore the dykes with 150,000 cubic meters of rocks.
Mr. Ibrahim Mahama, the assembly member for Akuse, urged the VRA to extend the road restoration project to Asutuare.
