The Kafue Lower Gorge RCC dam is under construction in Zambia

摘要

The 130.5 m-high RCC gravity dam, which will have a crest length of 374.5 m, is under construction at the Kafue Gorge Lower hydropower project in Zambia, PowerChina has announced. As part of the construction, the dam has 19 monoliths, which include three gated spillway sections, with a maximum total discharge capacity of 7228 m~3/s. A high plasticity RCC mix design has been adopted for the dam, which is suitable for a high placement rate of the RCC. The RCC placement began in June 2018 and the highest placement rate recorded was 110 000 m~3/month and 9000 m~3/day at the end of December, 2018. The dam height will be increased by 47 m with an RCC volume of about 530 000 m~3. Construction is reported to be progressing well and the dam is expected to be complete by September this year. A 750 MW hydropower plant is also under construction as part of the scheme. Zambia currently has 2750.5 MW of hydropower in operation.