Following relentless alarms trumpeted on the poor quality of work on both Karuma and Isumba Hydro Power Plants — including a public interest law suit –, government and the dam contractors have been compelled to take swift action.
Sika Group, a manufacturer of specialty chemicals for construction based in Switzerland has been contracted as a third party, to take on the repairing of concrete cracks which developed on Isimba Dam’s spillway section.
The Cracks were first dismissed as harmless by “experts” brought in by the contractor Sinohydro Corporation Ltd.
The experts upon inspection and investigation deduced that the cracks were as a result of thermal stress.
They concluded in their report that cracks “are normal cracks associated with civil structures that can be repaired and will not affect the integrity and operation of the dam.”
The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development however, is revealing that the Swiss company Sika has had to be brought in to sort out the defects.
The Ministry’s spokesperson Ibrahim Kasita announced on the weekend that that team from Switzerland reported on 17th September 2016.
Kasita says the entire cost of the repairs is to be borne by the contractor.
Meanwhile, the concreting phase on the cracked spillway has been halted, according to the ministry, pending installation of a cooling plant.
“The Plant was delivered and is under installation that was expected to be completed by 30th September 2016,” Kasita said in a statement.
“Concreting of the spillway will resume upon commissioning of the cooling plant. Works on the other sections of the project (intake, headrace, power house, tailrace tunnels and outfall) are on-going.”
Isimba
Further upstream on the 183Mega Watt Isimba Hydropower in Kamuli district, similar defects have been reported, where cracks were sited on its Draft Tube Number 4.
Installation of the Draft Tube has been completed and according to Mr Kasita upon completion, wielding tests were carried out to ascertain its adequacy and integrity and the test results met requirements as specified in the contract.
In May this year, a concerned citizen Henry Kyalimpa filed a Legal Suit at the High Court in Kampala on against the Attorney-General of Uganda, Karuma Contractor, Isimba Contractor, Consultant of Karuma and Isimba, EXIM Bank of China and UEGCL.
Kyalimpa is seeking declarations and orders to the effect that an independent engineering, financial and value for money audit be commissioned to determine the quality of works, progress and viability of the Karuma and Isimba Hydropower Projects. The case is still progressing.
Both Karuma and Isimba HPPs are financed by Exim Bank of China, which is contributing 85% of the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) cost, while Government of Uganda is contributing 15%.
They are about 48%, and 51 % complete respectively and are both expected to be commission in 2018.
Source/ Chimpreports
