List of dams and reservoirs in Nigeria

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Dams and reservoirs in Nigeria are used for irrigation, water supply, hydro - electric power generation or a combination of these. They are of particular importance in the northern part of the country, where there is low rainfall.

Kainji Dam in Niger State, Nigeria supplied water from the Kainji Lake ASC Leiden - Rietveld Collection - Nigeria 1970 - 1973 - 01 - 083 Kainji Dam. The water flows from four openings.jpg
Kainji Dam in Niger State, Nigeria supplied water from the Kainji Lake
The Kainji Lake National Park located at Niger and Kwara state Nigeria Kainji Lake National Park located at Niger and Kwara state Nigeri.jpg
The Kainji Lake National Park located at Niger and Kwara state Nigeria
View of River Kaduna (from the bridge to the Makarfi Millenium City) [Kaduna State] River Kaduna.jpg
View of River Kaduna (from the bridge to the Makarfi Millenium City) [Kaduna State]

The Niger Dams Project, [1] is a series of three dams and reservoirs built in the second half of the 20th century in Kwara, Niger, and Kebbi states, northwestern Nigeria, on the Niger and Kaduna rivers. The first of the dams was built at Kainji in 1969. Its reservoir, Kainji Lake, supports irrigation and fishing projects in the states in which it lies. On its western shore, Lake Kainji National Park, including the Borgu and Zugurma game reserves, has promoted the tourism industry. The dam and hydroelectric power plant at Jebba, 103 kilometres (64 mi) from the Kainji Dam, were completed in 1984, and the dam at Shiroro Gorge on the Kaduna River, west of Bida in Niger state, began operations in 1990.

The study revealed that there are 323 large, medium and small dams, which have been constructed and are being operational in Nigeria. They have a total storage capacity of more than 30×109 m3. Eighty-five percent of the larger dams are located in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of the country. [2]

Seventy-nine percent have domestic and industrial water supply components, [2] while 33% have irrigation as a major use to which the stored water is put; 29% are for fisheries, 16% for recreation and 4% are also for hydro-electric power generation (HEP). The three largest hydropower dams are under operation and control the flow of the Niger and Kaduna rivers. Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro dams are with total active capacity of 18.6 billion cubic metres (660 billion cubic feet) and total power capacity of 1920 MW. Dams in Nigeria can be classified into various categories, such as structure, age, purpose, etc. The common dams are small dams to be followed by medium dams with very few large dams. This can be attributed to their cost, demand and availability of land. The order of location of dams in Nigeria based on the district is north west, north east, north central, south west, south east and south. Some of these dams have failed (operational, functional and structural) in the past years due to lack of proper maintenance. It was concluded that citing of dams in Nigeria is based on many factors, such as land availability, purpose, water need, ecological factors and government policy.

The table below shows some of the large dams in the country.

StateDamCapacity
millions of m3
Surface area
hectares
Primary usage
Osun State Ede-Erinle Reservoir ----Water supply
Oyo State Asejire Reservoir 2,369Water supply
Sokoto State Bakolori Dam 4508,000Irrigation
Kano State Challawa Gorge Dam 93010,117Water supply
Gombe State Dadin Kowa Dam 2,80029,000Water supply
Sokoto State Goronyo Dam 94220,000Irrigation
Oyo State Ikere Gorge Dam 6904,700Hydro-electric, water supply
Niger State Jebba Dam 3,60035,000Hydro-electric power
Katsina State Jibiya Dam 1424,000Water supply, irrigation
Bauchi State Kafin Zaki Dam 2,70022,000Planned - irrigation
Niger State Kainji Dam 15,000130,000Hydro-electric
Adamawa State Kiri Dam 61511,500Irrigation, plans for hydro-electric
Ogun State Oyan River Dam 2704,000Water supply, irrigation,hydro-electric
Niger State Shiroro Dam 31,200Hydro-electric power
Kano State Tiga Dam 1,87417,800Irrigation, water supply
Kebbi State Zauro polder project Irrigation
Katsina State Zobe Dam 1775,000Water supply

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dartmouth Dam</span> Dam in Victoria

Dartmouth Dam is a large rock-fill embankment dam with an uncontrolled chute spillway across the Mitta Mitta, Gibbo, and Dart rivers, the Morass Creek and a number of small tributaries. The dam is located near Mount Bogong in the north-east of the Australian state of Victoria. The dam's purpose includes irrigation, the generation of hydro-electric power, water supply and conservation. The impounded reservoir is called Dartmouth Reservoir, sometimes called Lake Dartmouth. The Dartmouth Power Station, a hydro-electric power station that generates power to the national grid, is located near the dam wall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tehri Dam</span> Dam in Uttarakhand, India

With a height of 260.5 m Tehri Dam is the tallest dam in India and 12th tallest dam in the world. With a total planned installed capacity of 2400 MW, it is the biggest Hydroelectric power plant in India. It is a multi-purpose rock and earth-fill embankment dam on the Bhagirathi River in New Tehri, Tehri Garhwal district in Uttarakhand, India. It is the primary dam of the THDC India Ltd. and the Tehri hydroelectric complex. Phase 1 was completed in 2006. The Tehri Dam withholds a reservoir for irrigation, municipal water supply and the generation of 1,000 megawatts (1,300,000 hp) of hydroelectricity. The dam's 1,000 MW variable-speed pumped-storage scheme is currently under construction with expected commissioning of first two units in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gandhi Sagar Dam</span> Dam in Mandsaur District Madhya Pradesh

GandhisagarDam is situated at a distance of 168 Kms from the District headquarter. The Dam is constructed on the Chambal River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kainji Dam</span> Dam in Niger, Nigeria

Kainji Dam is a dam across the Niger River in Niger State of Central Nigeria. Construction of the dam was carried out by Impregilo to designs by Joint Consultants, Balfour Beatty and Nedeco, and began in 1964 to be completed in 1968. The total cost was estimated at US$209 million, with one-quarter of this amount used to resettle people displaced by the construction of the dam and its reservoir, Kainji Lake.

Cochrane Dam is a minor earthfill embankment dam with concrete spillway across Georges Creek, located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The main purpose of the dam is to supply water for hydro-power at the downstream Brown Mountain Power Station and for irrigation purposes. The impounded reservoir is called Cochrane Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Navajo Dam</span> Dam in San Juan and Rio Arriba Counties, New Mexico

Navajo Dam is a dam on the San Juan River, a tributary of the Colorado River, in northwestern New Mexico in the United States. The 402-foot (123 m) high earthen dam is situated in the foothills of the San Juan Mountains about 44 miles (71 km) upstream and east of Farmington, New Mexico. It was built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) in the 1960s to provide flood control, irrigation, domestic and industrial water supply, and storage for droughts. A small hydroelectric power plant was added in the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Qaraoun</span> Body of water

Lake Qaraoun is an artificial lake or reservoir located in the southern region of the Beqaa Valley, Lebanon. It was created near Qaraoun village in 1959 by building a 61 m-high (200 ft) concrete-faced rockfill dam in the middle reaches of the Litani River. The reservoir has been used for hydropower generation, domestic water supply, and for irrigation of 27,500 ha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jayakwadi Dam</span> Dam in Maharashtra, India

Jayakwadi dam is an earthen dam located on Godavari river at the site of Jayakwadi village in Paithan taluka of Aurangabad district in Maharashtra, India. It is a multipurpose project. The water is mainly used to irrigate agricultural land in the drought-prone Marathwada region of the state. It also provides water for drinking and industrial usage to nearby towns and villages and to the municipalities and industrial areas of Aurangabad and Jalna districts. The surrounding area of the dam has a garden and a bird sanctuary.

The Kandadji Dam, is a large multipurpose dam under construction on the Niger River. The site is situated near the small town of Kandadji, Tillabéri Department, Tillabéri Region, Niger, 180 km northwest of the capital Niamey. It is being built by the Haut Commissariat à l'Aménagement de la Vallée du Niger, a public body under the Primer Minister's Office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jebba Hydroelectric Power Station</span> Power station in Nigeria

The Jebba Hydroelectric Power Station, also Jebba Power Station, is a hydroelectric power plant across the Niger River in Nigeria. It has a power generating capacity of 578.4 megawatts, enough to power over 364,000 homes. The plant was commissioned on 13 April 1985, although commercial energy production began in 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shiroro Hydroelectric Power Station</span>

The Shiroro Power Station is a hydroelectric power plant of the Kaduna River in Niger State, Nigeria. It has a power generating capacity of 600 megawatts (800,000 hp) enough to power over 404,000 homes

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bakolori Dam</span> Dam in Nigeria

The Bakolori Dam is in Sokoto State in northwest Nigeria. It was completed in 1978 and its reservoir filled by 1981. It is a major reservoir on the Sokoto River, a tributary of the Rima River, which in turn feeds the Niger River. Water from the dam supplies the Bakolori Irrigation Project.

The Zobe Dam is in Dutsin-Ma local government area of Katsina State in the north of Nigeria. It is an earth-fill structure with a height of 19 m and a total length of 2,750 m. The dam has a storage capacity of 179 Mca and irrigation potential of 8,000 hectares. Although the dam was completed in 1983, as of 2010 it was still not being used for water supply to Katsina city, for local irrigation or for power generation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dadin Kowa Dam</span> Dam in Gombe State, Nigeria

The Dadin Kowa Dam is situated in Yamaltu Deba local government area of Gombe State in the North east part of Nigeria. The dam is located about 37 kilometers to the east of Gombe town and 5km from Dadin kowa village, and provides drinking water for the town. The dam was completed by the federal government in 1984, with the goal of providing irrigation and electricity for the planned Gongola sugar plantation project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zengwen Dam</span> Dam in Dapu, Chiyai County, Taiwan

Zengwen Dam, also spelled Tsengwen Dam, is a major earthen dam in Dapu Township, Chiayi County, Taiwan on the Zengwen River. It is the third tallest dam in Taiwan, and forms Zengwen Reservoir (曾文水庫), the biggest reservoir in Taiwan by volume. The dam stores water for irrigation of the Chianan Plain, Taiwan's most productive agricultural region, and provides flood control along the Zengwen River which flows through Tainan City. The dam supports a 50 megawatt hydroelectric power station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Water supply and sanitation in Nigeria</span>

Responsibility of water supply in Nigeria is shared between three levels of government – federal, state and local. The federal government is in charge of water resources management; state governments have the primary responsibility for urban water supply; and local governments together with communities are responsible for rural water supply. The responsibility for sanitation is not clearly defined.

The Meander Dam is a concrete gravity dam across the Upper Meander River, located in northern Tasmania, Australia. The impounded reservoir is called Lake Huntsman.

The electricity sector in Nigeria generates, transmits and distributes megawatts(MW) of electric power that is significantly less than what is needed to meet basic household and industrial needs. Nigeria has twenty-three (23) power generating plants connected to the national grid with the capacity to generate 11,165.4 MW of electricity. These plants are managed by generation companies (GenCos), independent power providers, and Niger Delta Holding Company. In 2012, the industry labored to distribute 5,000 MW, very much less than the 40,000 MW needed to sustain the basic needs of the population. This deficit is also exacerbated by unannounced load shedding, partial and total system collapse and power failure. To meet demand, many households and businesses resort to purchasing generating sets to power their properties, this source of energy provided 6,000 MW in 2008. Nigeria has a chronic electricity shortage that has affected the country for many years. In 2022, its power grid collapsed twice during one week.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vorotan Cascade</span> Dam in Syunik Province

The Vorotan Cascade, or the ContourGlobal™ Hydro Cascade, is a cascade on the Vorotan River in Syunik Province, Armenia. It was built to produce hydroelectric power and provide irrigation water. The Vorotan Cascade consists of three hydroelectric power plants and five reservoirs with a combined installed capacity of 404.2 MW. It is one of the main power generation complexes in Armenia.

Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Station is a 700 megawatts (940,000 hp) hydroelectric power plant under construction in Niger State, Nigeria. When completed, as expected, it will be the second-largest hydroelectric power station in the country, behind the 760 megawatts (1,020,000 hp) Kainji Hydroelectric Power Station.

References

  1. "Niger Dams Project | dams and reservoirs, Nigeria". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  2. 1 2 Oke, Isaiah Adesola; Ismail, Abubakar (2013). "Dams and water supply systems in Nigeria". In Khlifi, Slaheddine (ed.). Dams: Structure, Performance and Safety Management. New York: Nova Science Publishers. pp. 279–292. ISBN   978-1-62417-717-0. EBSCOhost   582625.

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