The
British began construction of the first dam in 1899.
Construction lasted until 1902.It was opened in December 10
1902. The project was designed by Sir William Willcocks and
involved several eminent engineers including Sir Benjamin
Baker and Sir John Aird, whose firm, John Aird & Company,
was the main contractor. A gravity dam, it was 1,900 m long
and 54 m high. The initial design was soon found to be
inadequate and the height of the dam was raised in two
phases, 1907–1912 and 1929–1933.
When the dam almost overflowed in 1946 it was decided that
rather than raise the dam a third time, a second dam would
be built 6 km upriver (about 4 miles). Proper planning began
in 1952, just after the Nasser revolution, and at first the
USA and Britain were to help finance construction with a
loan of USD $270 million. Both nations cancelled the offer
in July 1956 for reasons not entirely known. A secret
Egyptian arms agreement with Czechoslovakia (Eastern Bloc)
and Egyptian recognition of the People's Republic of China
are cited as possible reasons. Soon thereafter, Nasser
nationalized the Suez Canal, intending to use its tolls to
subsidize the High Dam project. This prompted Britain,
France, and Israel to attack Egypt, occupying the Suez Canal
and precipitating the Suez Crisis. The United Nations, USSR
and US forced the invaders to withdraw and the canal was
left in Egyptian hands. The Egyptian government continued to
intend to finance the dam project alone by using the
revenues of the Suez Canal to help pay for construction. But
as part of the Cold War struggle for influence in Africa the
Soviet Union stepped in in 1958, and possibly a third of the
cost of the dam was paid for as a gift. The Soviets also
provided technicians and heavy machinery. The enormous rock
and clay dam was designed by the Russian Zuk Hydroproject
Institute.
Construction
began in 1960. The High Dam, as-Sad al-'Aali, was completed
on July 21, 1970, with the first stage finished in 1964. The
reservoir began filling in 1964 while the dam was still
under construction and first reached capacity in 1976. The
reservoir raised concerns from archaeologists and a rescue
operation was begun in 1960 under UNESCO. Sites were
surveyed and excavated and 24 major monuments were moved to
safer locations (see Abu Simbel) or granted to countries
that helped with the works (such as the Debod temple in
Madrid and the Temple of Dendur in New York).
The Aswan High Dam is 3,600 m in length, 980 m wide at the
base, 40 m wide at the crest and 111 m tall. It contains 43
million m³ of material. At maximum, 11,000 m³ of water can
pass through the dam every second. There are further
emergency spillways for an extra 5000 m³ per second and the
Toshka Canal links the reservoir to the Toshka Depression.
The reservoir, named Lake Nasser, is 550 km long and 35 km
at its widest with a surface area of 5,250 km² and holds 132
km³.
The dam powers twelve generators each rated at 175
megawatts, producing a hydroelectric output of 2.1 gigawatts.
Power generation began in 1967. When the dam first reached
peak output it produced around half of Egypt's entire
electricity production (about 15% by 1998) and allowed for
the connection of most Egyptian villages to electricity for
the first time. The dam mitigated the effects of dangerous
floods in 1964 and 1973 and of threatening droughts in
1972–73 and 1983–84. A new fishing industry has been created
around Lake Nasser, though it is struggling due to its
distance from any significant markets.
The
British began construction of the first dam in 1899.
Construction lasted until 1902.It was opened in December 10
1902. The project was designed by Sir William Willcocks and
involved several eminent engineers including Sir Benjamin
Baker and Sir John Aird, whose firm, John Aird & Company,
was the main contractor. A gravity dam, it was 1,900 m long
and 54 m high. The initial design was soon found to be
inadequate and the height of the dam was raised in two
phases, 1907–1912 and 1929–1933.
Construction
began in 1960. The High Dam, as-Sad al-'Aali, was completed
on July 21, 1970, with the first stage finished in 1964. The
reservoir began filling in 1964 while the dam was still
under construction and first reached capacity in 1976. The
reservoir raised concerns from archaeologists and a rescue
operation was begun in 1960 under UNESCO. Sites were
surveyed and excavated and 24 major monuments were moved to
safer locations (see Abu Simbel) or granted to countries
that helped with the works (such as the Debod temple in
Madrid and the Temple of Dendur in New York).